Conception
by PupshitDesu
Summary: After Kaiba falls into a mysterious coma, Jonouchi makes the choice to save him. But the only way to do it is by going into the man's mind. And god knows what he'll find hiding inside. Puppyshipping KaibaxJonouchi
1. Chapter 1

Jonouchi couldn't believe what he was doing. He almost never went to Kaiba's office, especially during a weekday if he could really help it, but the weight of his grief was just too much to shoulder around without finding some kind of relief. Even if that meant potentially pissing off the man by crashing his morning routine to talk to him, Jonouchi was going to do it. It had to be done. After everything that had happened, he couldn't rightly sit in suspense at the hotel room Kaiba was letting him use for the time being; everything felt too strange for that now.

Thankfully no one questioned him while he was walking through the lobby. They all glanced at him briefly before returning to work, like he wasn't someone worth paying attention to. The ladies at the reception desk were too busy with answering phone calls, and the security guards who stood by just trailed Jonouchi with their eyes. When he reached the elevator, they did absolutely nothing, and no one stopped him before he reached the top floor. Either they had a lot of faith in the response time of their security force, or they weren't nearly paranoid enough.

He knew Kaiba didn't have any meetings scheduled for today. Usually he didn't toward the end of the week, and crossing through the maze of offices and clerical workers, he somehow managed to remember where the Chief Executive Office was. There were only a sparingly few times where he'd ever had the chance to go there. Despite being a bit nervous over confronting Kaiba after ignoring him for two weeks, he swept past the CEO's two personal assistants' desks and stormed into his office, blocking the door with his body in case anyone tried following him.

"I need to talk to you," he stammered, "I can't stay at the hotel anymore."

Kaiba gazed at him, seeming a bit surprised, and stood. His appearance was normal, perhaps, to an untrained eye, but Jonouchi knew Kaiba well enough to recognize the signs of lacking sleep.

"Why not?" asked Kaiba. "I don't think you should come home."

"You know as well as I do that I don't have a home," snapped Jonouchi, "And I'm sick of living under you, even if you aren't around. Do you know how cowardly that is? You can't even face me. I'm going back to Yugi's place. This is just too much to deal with, and you know it."

He'd expected Kaiba to be angry or hurt, or possibly a little panicked. He wasn't; he instead became so placid as to be a little disturbing. He gazed at Jonouchi, his eyes as intense as ever, but something behind them seemed very odd.

"So you're leaving, then?" He asked his voice low.

"What choice do I have, after everything that happened? I can't stay there. Not when we aren't even speaking, and I can't see myself ever forgiving you for what you did... Not for a long time. You crossed the line Kaiba, and until I can get over it, I can't see you.

And look at yourself. You're a mess. We're better off away from each other anyways, and you know it. It was a mistake trying to be anything else but strangers."

Kaiba's expression changed, almost as if he was on the verge of anger. His lips parted, and Jonouchi expected him to speak, but instead he paused; his eyes narrowed a little, and he looked Jonouchi in the face for a few seconds before finally speaking.

"You're right," he agreed, his voice so quiet that it was barely audible. Jonouchi had to do a double-take; the last thing he'd expected was agreement. "You should leave. Just go back to the Game Shop. Forget my number."

Kaiba was very brisk about his statements, and once he'd finished talking, he sat back at his desk and looked like he was about to work. However, he didn't. He stared at some (doubtless very important) forms that sat on his desk.

"So that's it? No plead to make me stay? I'm almost disappointed, but I guess that's what I wanted anyways. You know Kaiba; I really did want us to work. I thought when you appeared that night that maybe, with some time apart, we could work out. But I can tell just by looking at you that you don't even care. I don't know what hurts more-what you did to me, or how you're acting now, but whatever. I can see myself out. Have a nice life."

He'd already put his hand on the knob by the time Kaiba called out to him. Jonouchi turned his head to look at him, if only because he wondered what the man had to say at a time like this. Kaiba certainly didn't look like he was about to beg him to stay.

"Wherever you go," Kaiba stated his voice firm but his eyes less than resigned, "Make sure it's far away."

"Don't even worry yourself over it; I'll be moving in with Yugi by the end of the month. You can have Japan to yourself..."

"Don't tell me where you're going. I don't want to know."

"I wasn't planning on it."

And, not wanting to prolong the inevitable, he turned the doorknob and left, his face feeling chilled and his body tingling. He had to walk quickly to get out of there. It was like having all the air sucked out of the room, trying to talk to Kaiba like that. Jonouchi was expecting some sort of fight, some sort of show of emotion, but he got nothing. Just a resigned goodbye and zilch to show for how hard he'd tried to make things work.

"Fuck him, I'm done."

* * *

Sitting on Yugi's old bed at the Game Shop, Jonouchi felt eerily out of place. This wasn't his home, and even if the other duelist was in California and said he could stay there until arrangements were settled, he felt pretty bad about it. He was pressing his company again on someone who didn't want him around, and Jonouchi couldn't help but feel as if maybe Yugi was just taking pity on him for getting jumped a few months ago.

That was a rough time. And a good excuse too, for moving since the old friend knew nothing about Jonouchi's relationship with Kaiba as of late. It was something that he was thinking about telling before, but couldn't exactly find the right way to explain it. Hey guess what, I just found out recently that I'm queer, and I'm dating Kaiba too, isn't that great? Wouldn't be a good way to go about it...

Now, at least, that conversation would never have to take place. Ever. He could go on like he did after high school graduation and hopefully figure out something to do, since Jonouchi was no bum and he'd sworn to Yugi that he'd find some way to pay for his plane ticket and traveling expenses, since he was after all, extremely broke.

Lying in bed, he thought about just going to sleep early, because he was beginning to feel sick. Everything had become much finalized now that he'd told Kaiba he was no longer seeing him, and despite the betrayal that had caused the split, Jonouchi couldn't for the life of him convince himself that he wanted that. His heart was in two conflicting halves, and one side knew he had to move on, but the other... Well, it remembered what it was like when times were good and how comfortable it had been.

"Jonouchi, there's a call for you!" hollered Sugoroku from downstairs. How such an old man had the capacity to shout like that, he didn't know. Perhaps it was a skill learned from having a teenage grandson for so many years.

Jonouchi wearily got out of bed, feeling oddly heavy and reluctant to rise. He supposed it made sense that he'd be a little bummed, all things considered. It was never a good feeling, ending a relationship. He made his way down the stairs, not wanting to keep the old man waiting for too long, and it was only when he put the phone to his ear that he wondered who the hell was calling him.

"Jonouchi here," he greeted, and immediately the person on the other line started speaking frantically.

"I don't know where you are, but you need to come back right now because something awful has happened and I'm not sure-"

"Whoa, wait a minute-"

"-He's not waking up. We tried everything, and the doctors don't know what's going on, they say nothing medically is wrong with him, but he's in coma again, and I don't know what to do. He might never wake up, Jonouchi. I can't do this, and I know I can handle Kaiba Corp and everything, but he's my brother, and if he dies like this-"

"Hoi!" Jonouchi spoke loudly to interrupt the person he now knew without a doubt was Mokuba. "Settle down, kid. You said your brother's in a coma? What the hell happened to him? I just saw him today, and he was...fine."

Relatively. Outside of being a little odd and seemingly exhausted, in all honesty, he'd been as healthy as usual.

"I told you. There's nothing medically wrong with him. Jonouchi, please. Please, just come home right now."

Mokuba sounded desperate. Jonouchi didn't bother correcting him for calling the Kaiba Mansion his 'home'. He probably didn't know about the separation yet, and he likely used whatever terms his brother had.

"Don't worry, I'll be there soon. Try to keep it together, okay? If Kaiba wakes up and you're bawling by his bed, I doubt he'll be amused," Jonouchi joked, and Mokuba did laugh a little, if only to dispel his obvious emotional strain. "He'll pull through like always, you'll see."

And after hanging up the phone, Jonouchi had to pause for a moment to figure out just what the hell was going on. Why was Kaiba comatose again? It didn't make any sense. Sure, he'd looked exhausted beyond reason in his office, like he did back in Battle City (and even during the Grand Prix), but that couldn't lead to just passing out and not waking up. It didn't make any sense.

Thankfully, Jonouchi hadn't yet sold his motorcycle. It was the fastest way to reach the Kaiba Mansion, and mounting it, the blond sighed before putting on his helmet. What was he doing? And why the hell did he care? Maybe it was because Mokuba sounded so distraught, and he couldn't leave the kid to cope alone. He was only fifteen, and it wouldn't be fair to punish him for something he wasn't a part of.

"Fuck my life, why is this always happening to me?" He muttered, twisting the accelerator, "Looks like I might not be leaving Japan after all."

He made the drive quickly to the Kaiba Mansion. It wasn't nearly as fast or smooth as it might have been in one of Kaiba's cars-firstly because Kaiba almost never drove the speed limit, and secondly because Jonouchi's bike was older and had worse acceleration than he'd like. But, he'd needed transportation, and it was the motorcycle he'd been able to afford. It was reliable, at least, which was why he did make it to the mansion without running into any problems on the way.

The house security obviously weren't aware that he and Kaiba were estranged either, because he apparently still had clearance at the front gate. The guard simply nodded and let him in, much as the one at the front doors did. It wasn't until he got inside that he actually saw Mokuba, who was running down the steps in the foyer to greet him. The kid was pretty sprightly for a tall fifteen-year-old. Maybe it ran in the family...

"What took you so long?" He asked, surprising Jonouchi by slamming directly into him and squeezing him in a rather tight embrace. Jonouchi patted his shoulder, a little short of breath. He couldn't answer until Mokuba released him.

"It's a long drive here from Domino. Where's your brother?"

"Upstairs," Mokuba replied, his eyes shimmering. He looked as if he was trying very hard not to tear up. Maybe he thought he was too old for things like that.

"Lead the way," Jonouchi urged, "I never did quite get the hang of this place."

"All right," Mokuba agreed, already starting the walk toward the staircase, "I'm sure you know the way to his room by now, though. That's where he's...sleeping."

When they reached Kaiba's bedroom, Jonouchi saw that one of the double doors was open, and when he peered inside, he saw a team of doctors and a surprising amount of machinery inside. Some of it made sense, like monitors for Kaiba's vital life signs, but a few things looked very high-tech and out of place.

He and Mokuba entered silently. The teen immediately sat at the edge of his brother's bed, watching him breathe so slowly that it was hard to notice. He'd seen Kaiba asleep before, but even then he hadn't seemed so...inactive.

"Damn," Jonouchi said, his voice wavering with lamentation, "He's gone, isn't he?"

"He isn't gone," Mokuba corrected sharply, making Jonouchi realize the error of his words, "He's comatose again, and no one can figure out why. From what the doctors say, though, there may be a solution."

"Only the Kaiba brothers call waking someone out of a coma a 'solution'," Jonouchi responded, rolling his eyes, "But I'm listening. What are the doctors saying? Nothing too risky I hope."

Mokuba averted his eyes, staring at his hands. Jonouchi blanched.

"What, you mean it's risky? How bad could their idea be?"

"It's not that horrible, just...generally dangerous. It's technology that's still in beta development. Some time ago, my brother invested in a development project for some medical engineering company. It's supposed to be a machine that can revive people from comatose states using outside influence."

"What do you mean, using 'outside influence'?" Asked Jonouchi, his face looking very confused, "You need to spell this out for me kid, what exactly are they recommending?"

Mokuba paused, gazing up at Jonouchi hesitantly. Jonouchi knew that face. That was the same face he'd seen when an eleven-year-old Mokuba had begged him to save his brother from a VR project gone wrong. What the hell was he about to get convinced into?

"The machine works by having a second person enter the comatose patient's subconscious while they sleep," he explained, "So, essentially, in order to wake him, another person has to link to his mind and convince him to come out of it. Usually, a coma is caused by a physical issue, but the doctors say that since Seto isn't showing any medical signs that would usually result in a coma, it must be a psychological issue."

Jonouchi gaped at Mokuba, a little dumbstruck.

"Did you seriously bring me here so I could jump into your brother's head? Are you insane? Has it even been tested?"

His steadily rising voice caused everyone but Kaiba to stir, and Mokuba shushed him, standing and looking around a bit suspiciously.

"Let's talk about this outside," he suggested, and Jonouchi grumbled, letting Mokuba direct him out of the bedroom. When they got into the hallway, he turned on the younger male.

"What are you asking me to do, Mokuba? I'm hardly into a position to go on some life-threatening adventure for his sake."

"Since when?" Mokuba asked, taken aback. "You care about him, don't you?"

Jonouchi paused. This wasn't exactly the way he'd wanted to have Mokuba find out about the breakup. He'd assumed the kid would find out from Kaiba, but it sounded like he'd gone comatose before he could break the news. Figured, the bastard...

"Since this morning," Jonouchi admitted, "I went to his office, and we... we're not exactly talking. I guess he did something to himself soon after I left."

Mokuba stared at him, his mouth slightly agape. He seemed quite shocked by the news, which piqued Jonouchi's interest. Kaiba's little brother had seemed fairly accepting of their relationship, but he'd never really indicated that he expected it to last for any length of time.

"I see," Mokuba replied finally, "But the fact remains that you're probably still the best person to try this."

"How?" Jonouchi challenged, skeptical. "We aren't really on friendly terms, Mokuba. Besides, you're his brother. If anyone, you'd be the best person for the job, even if he and I were still getting along."

"Believe me, I'd do it in a heartbeat," Mokuba stated, his expression determined, "But there are a few factors that would make that unwise. There are things in there that...I probably shouldn't see. Seto keeps a lot of things from me, and probably for good reason. That, and if I have too strong an emotional response to something while I'm in his subconscious, I might jeopardize the whole situation. For instance, if I saw our mother in his memories..."

Mokuba trailed off, looking away for a second before he continued.

"He trusts you, Jonouchi, and I know that he's probably told you a lot of things that he never told me-or anyone else, for that matter. That and you've been around the block a few times. I don't think there's anything in that big head of his that'll set you off."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, but I'm really not sure about this whole thing. Do you know if the machine even works?"

"It's been used once before," Mokuba nodded, "Successfully, in fact. But my brother's mind is different from other people. You should know that by now. That said, you've seen a lot of crazy things, Jonouchi. You watched Atlantis rise out of the sea and then put it back where it belonged. I think you can deal with Seto's head."

Jonouchi sighed, gazing into the room they'd just left. Everything was tensely still and quiet in there, like the doctors were afraid to make any noise that might wake their comatose patient. What an odd way to act. Jonouchi probably would have made as much noise as possible to make him snap out of it.

"Can I have some time to think it over?" Jonouchi asked, sighing. "This is a bit much to take in."

Mokuba nodded silently, and Jonouchi decided to return to Kaiba's bedroom. He took a seat at the edge of the bed, watching him sleep. Well, sleep wasn't really the proper word. If it wasn't for the excruciatingly slow rise and fall of his chest, then he'd appear dead. He'd seen Kaiba sleep before. There was always rapid eye movement at some point, or maybe fingers twitching. Usually his breathing was deep, but fairly loud and almost rumbling from his chest like some great cat. He simply lay silently now, though, and Jonouchi wondered if he had any dreams when he was like this. Perhaps it was just darkness. That seemed like an awful situation.

He sighed and looked around the room. He was searching for the machine he'd glimpsed-the one he was certain Mokuba had been talking about. It had stood out from the others. It had been more expensive-looking and streamlined, like it was brand new, a benefit that the rest of the equipment lacked.

He spotted it across the room. It looked like one of those virtual world pods from years before, only it resembled something close to an easy chair or recliner. The padding was deeper, and there was a special headphone-looking device where Jonouchi figured his head would be lying. It appeared simple enough, but knowing how complicated the virtual worlds from before were, it probably wasn't. He could only imagine what kind of technology had to be used-hell, invented-to make something like that work.

And Kaiba's head wasn't some theme park made by an angry prepubescent child, or a medieval kingdom built by vengeful old men. There were probably some unsettling things inside of it that Jonouchi wasn't quite sure he wanted to see yet. He'd glimpsed bits and pieces through the shadows they left on Kaiba's face when he recalled them, and the odd look that he sometimes had in his eyes. Considering too how they broke up- no, what led to their breaking up, who knew what was going on in there? Or if it was even a good idea to get Kaiba back.

Taking a seat next to him, he tried getting a handle on himself. The man's face looked so relaxed, unlike how he was earlier that day. His features weren't tense with worry as they had been that morning. Touching his dark hair briefly, Jonouchi wondered what he was even thinking. Was he really considering going after him?

But if he didn't, who would? Mokuba wasn't going to, that much was clear. And if no one did, Kaiba would certainly end up dying in his bed, and Jonouchi wouldn't be left with that sort of guilt. No way would he be responsible for the man's death, even indirectly. If there was something he could do to prevent it...he would. He was a good guy, and good guys did things sometimes they didn't exactly want to do. Yugi certainly had. And maybe it was time for Jonouchi to as well.

"What did you do to yourself this time, Kaiba? I almost feel like you did this shit on purpose...'

Which was impossible. Who could time their own coma so perfectly? Besides, Kaiba was vengeful, but he'd never put Mokuba through that sort of emotional turmoil over a silly relationship. He was better than that and crossing his arms and becoming a bit more worried over the whole situation, Jonouchi sighed. There wasn't any other alternative. If there was a way to get him back, then he knew it was the right thing to do it. Mokuba was counting on him to. And Kaiba, wherever he was, needed him.

"-If you weren't such a good older brother."

Getting up, he left the room, Mokuba immediately coming to him as soon as the door was closed. His eyes looked hopeful, but the expression on his face appeared worn. Who knew how long he'd been trying to find a way to save his brother. When Kaiba had been kidnapped before, the kid had run through the rainy night risking everything to find Yugi. Although it wasn't so dire this time, he had the same look about his face.

"Will you do it?" He asked, trying to find Jonouchi's eyes as the blond avoided looking at him. "Will you bring him back?"

"Yeah. I'll bring him back, Mokuba. Just if anything goes wrong... don't keep me on a machine like that. Promise?"

"I promise."

It didn't take long after that for the doctors to set everything up. The machine worked on an alert system, in case Kaiba's subconscious ever decided to reject Jonouchi's presence. They placed a strange looking headphone like device on him and turned it on, so that their minds could be transferred into each other, when the time was right.

"You could be in there for hours," warned the head medical officer, "and if that happens, we'll have to IV you. Worst case scenario and you don't get him after three days; we unplug you and try again. Understand?"

"Sounds fine, doc," replied Jonouchi, already taking a seat into his pod, "You can stick me if you need to. It doesn't matter to me."

The doctors made him sign a liability form before continuing, to save their own asses in case of an accident. Then setting their subject into the seat, they told Jonouchi to close his eyes, setting the device against his temples. It was making a strange whirring sound, and before he knew it, everything started feeling strange, like he was falling. Or floating. It was anyone's guess. Gravity was gone, and opening his eyes, he found that he was traveling through space, silently falling into a dark void that had to be Kaiba's mind.

It was like entering Noa's virtual world, only less intense. The sensation was almost relaxing, until Jonouchi's body collided with the pavement. His face hit the ground hard, cheek first, and getting up, he saw scrapes on his hands and face from where he fell. It felt like he'd tripped rather than fall down from the sky, which was a relief. He looked around quickly, hoping that no one had seen him.

Only there was no one around. The airy-looking space that looked like the entrance of KaibaLand was completely deserted of people. No one was around, and there was something eerie about being there alone; something not quite right about it. Looking around one last time, he thought it reasonable to assume that if Kaiba was anywhere, it had to be in his own theme park.

"Like he'd want to be anywhere else, if his brain shut down... "

Actually Jonouchi could name a few places, but they weren't close to where he was now. Trying to find the hotel or his corporate office would take too much time, so hoping that he was making the right decision by picking the theme park to start his search, Jonouchi ran toward it.

The theme park was empty as well inside. It was dark, too, the only lights being the ones that were intended to turn on when the power grid shut down and emergency power was needed. Jonouchi gazed around the place, the hair on the back of his neck standing on end. He couldn't help but feel suspicious of the situation. Experience had made him wary of such scenarios.

He was trying to decide where to go first when all the lights very suddenly turned on. Jonouchi shielded his eyes, squeezing them shut. He saw stars from the shock of having his pupils shrink to suit the change in brightness, and slowly opened his eyes so he could look around. Everything was just as silent as before for a moment, and the lights were far brighter than they should have been. Jonouchi felt almost as if someone must be shining a spotlight at him, but he was too wary to move.

Looking around for the source of a sudden noise, Jonouchi began turning around in slow circles. It was like static, and occasional tapping, and then the sound of someone humming in satisfaction.

"Greetings, visitors," sounded a voice that Jonouchi recognized as Kaiba's. There was something strange about it, though. He sounded younger, for one, but there was a manner in his tone that made Jonouchi's skin crawl. Frowning, he bended his knees slightly in a defensive crouch as the invisible voice continued.

"Welcome to Kaiba Land," he announced, but his tone indicated that he was feeling more smug than welcoming, "We suggest you enjoy the dueling stadium that can be found through the left-side door in the lobby."

Kaiba's voice reverberated in the empty room, echoing slightly before everything was silent again. Jonouchi stayed where he was, wondering if Kaiba could see him, or if it had just been a memory fragment. He hoped he could escape the attention, whatever it was. Jumping a little when the voice started again, Jonouchi looked up confused, looking for cameras that could be spying on him.

"We suggest," Kaiba sounded like he was issuing a warning now, "That you enter the stadium."

Jonouchi didn't argue. The lights were so bright that he could barely see in there; it was more like being on a surgeon's table than in a lobby. Hopefully, the case would be different in the stadium. Kaiba spoke again as he started cautiously walking toward the archway on his left.

"Excellent choice," he congratulated in a condescending tone, "Please do not wander while on your way to the stadium. We here at Kaiba Corporation would prefer that our visitors avoided unexpected bodily harm due to snooping around..."

Did it really matter if that was a threat or not? Jonouchi walked more briskly toward the archway, and possibly for the first time in his life, he was eager to escape into the relative darkness that waited beyond. When he entered the room, he saw the familiar dueling field. It wasn't as large as the massive one in the stadium over at Kaiba Land US, but it was still pretty impressive. He could remember kids playing there, getting the pro experience without having to pay out the ass.

The stadium was almost relieving in its darkness, and he couldn't help but feel a compulsion to hide in one of the blackened corners of the seat sections in the hopes that the odd Kaiba-like voice wouldn't find him there. His idea was made null, however, when Kaiba spoke again.

"What a lovely surprise," he purred, if purring was something a cat did when it was on the hunt, "I'm sure our visitor would enjoy watching the duel currently in progress."

"Duel...?" Jonouchi repeated, looking from one side of the dueling field to another to see if there were any contestants. The lights were still dim there, much as they had been in the lobby before the Kaiba sound-a-like had shown up. He saw neither duelists nor monsters in the vicinity, and was starting to walk toward one side of the room when Kaiba spoke again, his voice strangely smooth but sharp all at once.

"Oh dear, don't get lost, visitor," he suggested, and the lights became very bright on the far side of the room. Jonouchi could now see a tall set of double doors that he knew weren't in the real KaibaLand, but he figured Kaiba's head didn't have to make any sense.

"Please follow the intended path," Kaiba requested, but the way he spoke made it clear that his 'request' was actually a command. Jonouchi wanted to argue. He really did. It was always his first impulse when Kaiba told him to do something (especially against his will), but he obeyed anyway, not wishing to anger whatever entity was pulling all the strings here. When he did reach the door, and had his hand on the knob, Kaiba addressed him again.

"Thank you for visiting with us-" his voice was sickly sweet, and in Jonouchi's mind's eye, he recalled an image of a fifteen-year-old Kaiba plastering a fake smile on his face as he invited them to his house back in high school. He gasped when the door jerked open so hard that he lost his grip on the handle and tumbled into the room. The heavy door swung shut immediately, and though he didn't seem to be in KaibaLand anymore, he could hear the echo of Kaiba's voice from the other side.

"-And we hope you enjoyed your stay, _Jonouchi_."

Jonouchi didn't move for a few seconds, breathing heavily. His heart was racing; he hadn't realized he was so on edge until the door opening had scared him. This wasn't exactly the best start to exploring Kaiba's mind. He'd expected some bad memories, and maybe something a little haunting, but as of this moment the entire environment was chilling. Was Kaiba really trapped in this place? His Kaiba, not whatever had been talking to him in the other rooms...

He stood and turned away from the door warily. The lights in this new place were fairly normal fluorescents. That was a small consolation, seeing as the landmark here was a huge maze. The entrance was near him, and after deducing that it couldn't be scaled or circumvented, Jonouchi resigned himself to finding his way through it. He'd been in a situation like this before; he just couldn't put his finger on it.

"I am gonna give him so much hell for this," Jonouchi muttered, starting his trek through the maze. He wasn't looking forward to the frustration of getting lost in the twists and turns, and being disappointed by dead ends. Heaven forbid there were traps in the place. Knowing Kaiba's fucked-up head, there very well could be.

He didn't know how long it was before he heard something outside of his own breathing and heavy footsteps. There was a pattering nearby, like something had heard him and was running away. Jonouchi crouched a little, making his step and posture less easy to detect. He was nearing a corner, and seeing as the path didn't fork, whatever he'd heard had to be somewhere in that direction. He took deep breaths to keep himself calm, and failing to do so, he decided to speak instead.

"Who's there?" He called out stubbornly, not wanting to lose his nerve already.

There was no answer. Cheesy chip-tune music turned on from somewhere, and jumping in surprise, the blond found himself being followed by a kid.

"He's not in here," the boy replied in answer to his earlier question, placing his hands on his hips, "You're looking in the wrong place. Don't you know where you are, stupid?"

That tone was familiar. Wanting immediately to snap back, Jonouchi's eyes flashed. Walking toward the little punk, he stared him down while crossing his arms in front of his chest, huffing.

"If I did, brat, I wouldn't still be here, now would I? What is this place?"

The boy glanced away quickly, like he was being watched. And then, whispering just enough for Jonouchi to catch his voice, he answered, "KaibaLand. Or, what he wanted it to be before everything changed. It wasn't supposed to look like this. I didn't want my theme park to hurt anyone."

"How could this place hurt anyone?" asked Jonouchi, "It isn't even real."

"It's very real, moron!" Hissed the kid, "And as long as your mind is trapped in here, you better act like it. You came in here looking for Kaiba, right? Well, you're in for a surprise. There's many of him here, and they're not all the ones you're looking for."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"His personalities are all trapped in his head. And I'm not the only one. How hard is that to understand?" asked the boy. "He never really grew up, not correctly. They're all still here, just like me, waiting for you. Except one of them, who really doesn't want you here. When he finds you, I don't know… You might not be able to get out."

"What are you talking about?"

Jonouchi gave the kid an incredulous look, but decided not to think too much about it. The boy was just a figment of Kaiba's imagination, right? The doctors had told him that some projections would try talking to him and not to take them too seriously. It was the way Kaiba's subconscious defended itself, and Jonouchi had to just ignore the projections so he could find the real man he was looking for. If he got caught talking to them, he'd be wasting time, and the longer he stayed in Kaiba's mind, the less likely it was that he wouldn't awaken.

And that wasn't going to happen.

"Ugh, whatever. Gotta go, kid. Maybe I'll see you around."

"Hey, wait!"

Apparently, the miniature-looking Kaiba didn't like being brushed off, because he came running to stop Jonouchi, blocking his way. His blue eyes were narrowed, and giving Jonouchi the ugliest look he could (for a ten year old), he pushed the blond back with his hands.

"You don't know where you're going. And I do."

"Why should I go along with you, brat?" asked Jonouchi, backing away, "You could be trying to steer me away or some shit. I can't trust you."

"What? I'm a child. Of course you can trust me."

That made sense. Kind of.

"Who are you, then?"

"Seto. Who are you?"

"Jonouchi," answered the blond, "And I know your older self. We're close… friends. Do you know where he is in here?"

"No. But I know where he could be. I'll help you."


	2. Chapter 2

Apparently "Seto" knew where he was going. He walked through the maze like it was nothing, not once confused by the many changes in direction. Something about it seemed very familiar to Jonouchi, as if he had done it before, but he really couldn't place the memory. It was like reliving a dream. The maze, the space theme, and how the whole ambiance felt while he walked behind the kid, who seemed somewhat more calm now that they weren't arguing anymore.

He had to be Kaiba's younger self. The way they bickered was evidence enough, and smirking to himself a little, Jonouchi couldn't help but feel a little comforted by the fact that he wasn't alone. Sure, it wasn't the Kaiba he wanted, but at least he wasn't alone. And the sooner the younger Kaiba found the real one, the sooner they'd get out of this whole mess and could go back home. They'd be able to wake Kaiba up… and maybe they'd be back in bed together, like how Jonouchi wanted it to be. Just lying next to each other sleeping comfortably as if nothing else was going on outside their little corner of the world.

"Stop grinning at me," grumbled the ten year old, giving his companion a backward glance, "What's your problem?"

"Nothing. You just remind me of him."

"So? You can stop staring at me with that look on your face."

"I can't help it," laughed Jonouchi, "You're just so like him, but smaller. It's something I used to wonder about, what he was like when he was a kid. He told me things about himself, but seeing you in front of me is kind of trippy."

"Told you what things?" asked Seto, giving Jonouchi a confused look, "He never talked about me to people before."

"Yeah well, sometimes he'd share things with me. Good things, really. Nothing that you need to worry about."

"Pfft, let me be the judge of that. Did he tell you about how his parents died?'

"Yes."

"… Wow."

Seto stopped talking, turning around to give Jonouchi a hesitant smile before sighing.

"He must really like you, then."

"I already told you-we're close friends."

"I didn't think he kept friends. Not after what happened…"

Jonouchi didn't say anything. They were a little more than just friends, but the kid didn't need to hear about it. Did he even know that much about himself yet? Probably not. Kaiba had told him he hadn't realized his queerness until he'd turned thirteen, which meant Seto was probably still oblivious to his sexuality. That was perfectly fine in Jonouchi's opinion; he didn't want to explain just how intimate he was with Kaiba now that they were grown adults. It would make for awkward conversation.

It was hard enough explaining their situation to Mokuba after they were too loud together one night. Despite being a few doors down away from the kid's bedroom, the teenager still heard them (well, mostly Jonouchi), and the next few days after the event were terrible. Jonouchi couldn't look Kaiba's brother in the face without blushing profusely, and although he had kind of known they were seeing each other, Mokuba had no idea it was in that context.

His brother had brought guys over before, but it never went that far. Ever. The fact that they were sleeping together and played it off as if they were just good friends had driven Mokuba crazy. It had taken quite some time before Kaiba finally admitted to him what was going on, and only after that had Mokuba been relatively sated.

"He's changed a lot since I first met him," replied Jonouchi, "And although he doesn't have many friends, he considers me one. Surprisingly. We didn't always get along, but time changes people. Everyone gets lonely."

"Did you get lonely?" asked Seto, looking at Jonouchi quizzically.

His ability to infer what was unsaid was impressive.

"Very. Most of my friends parted ways after high school, and I really didn't have anyone. We just kind of bumped into each other one night, and started talking. Funny though, he tried pulling that superiority shit on me, but lost his way in my neighborhood, so he had to stay over at my apartment for the night. We ended up reminiscing a lot."

"And eventually he ended up talking about me? Figures."

"Would you rather he kept you a secret?" teased Jonouchi, "It's not like he spilled everything at once. Just bits and pieces, since he didn't like talking about it much. And I don't blame him either. You've had a hard life."

"Yeah, well, I don't want your pity," snapped Seto, "And I certainly don't need it. I'm fine. Things were pretty bad, but I'm tougher than I look. Just because I'm a kid doesn't mean I can't handle it."

"I never doubted that."

Coming to the end of the maze, young Seto turned around to stick his tongue out at Jonouchi, who just smiled at him. He couldn't take the kid seriously, him being so like a tiny parody of Kaiba himself. Looking at their surroundings, he was surprised to find himself at school. It was Domino High all over again, and when he turned around, the maze had vanished. They were just standing together in the entrance hallway of the school, and feeling inexplicably as if he was late for something, Jonouchi rushed toward what he knew was his homeroom.

"Slow down, you're running too fast!"

Seto was chasing after him, panting a little. Despite being a sprightly, long-legged child, he was still half the size of Jonouchi. Frowning, the older male stopped running, and instead walked briskly toward his class, waiting for the kid to catch up before opening the door.

"You shouldn't just rush into things," chided Seto, "What if he's just waiting for you in the other room?"

"Who's waiting for me? Kaiba could be in there, so I have to go look. If you're too scared to come, then you can just wait here. I'm not scared."

"Well, you really should be."

Jonouchi rolled his eyes, and walking into the classroom, he was surprised to find his old friends. Yugi, Honda, Anzu, and Ryou were all there, along with Miho even, sitting at their assigned desks as they waved cheerily at Jonouchi's arrival. None of them paid Seto any attention as he shyly followed behind the blond, like a nervous animal. Taking his old seat, Jonouchi felt like he was in school again.

"I feel trapped in here."

"Chill out, kid, you're fine," answered Jonouchi, turning his attention to Seto, who sat cross legged on the floor, "Nothing's going to happen. This is just a memory."

"How do you know that?"

"Because Kaiba was only late to class once, and this was when it happened. He got a detention and the teacher ended up getting fired later that day. It was hilarious."

"I don't find that funny," replied Seto, his tone surprisingly grim, "And you shouldn't either."

The whole room fell silent when the sensei walked in, carrying his leather briefcase and setting it on his desk before ushering the class up. He looked as stony as ever, ruler in his hand, and Jonouchi couldn't stop himself from giving the man a snide look, even if it was just a memory.

"Good morning, class," bellowed the man, slamming his ruler on his desk hard to wake everyone up.

"Good morning, Sensei," echoed the class, "And thank you for teaching us."

Jonouchi practically gagged out the lines, taking his seat as soon as he could while Seto snickered at him. His eyes were shining, and he seemed to be enjoying the show, probably since no one could see him and he was just there to watch Jonouchi.

"Where is Kaiba Seto?" barked the man, scanning the seats, "I don't see him in attendance. Does anyone know where he is?"

Everyone looked really confused. Jonouchi knew where he was, but he wasn't going to say anything. It was one of the secrets Kaiba had told him years later, and snickering to himself over it, he caught the attention of the teacher, who came at him pointing the ruler in the blond's face.

"Do you know where he is, Jonouchi Katsuya? Because if you do, you better say something now."

"I don't, Sensei."

"I think you're lying."

Before anything more could be said, the door opened, and in paraded Kaiba, carrying his metal briefcase and looking past everyone as he walked directly to his seat. He acted like nothing out of the ordinary was going on. Jonouchi knew exactly why the male was late, and couldn't contain his smile. It was an issue that seemed to plague him often in the mornings, but apparently at fifteen, Kaiba wasn't yet entirely capable of dealing with it.

"Oh, Kaiba Seto, it's so good of you to finally join us," sneered the teacher, turning away from Jonouchi's face to narrow his eyes at his best student, "Too busy checking stocks this morning to come to class on time?"

"I overslept," Kaiba replied, his tone edged with irritation at being questioned, "It won't happen again."

"It had better not. You have a detention with me this afternoon. I hope you don't have any meetings at that business of yours. The sooner you realize where your priorities really are, the better you'll do in my class. Understand me?"

"Crystal clear," answered Kaiba dryly, "Thank you for being so lucid."

He took his seat and scowled. Jonouchi watched him from afar, well aware of what was going to happen later that lunch period. Kaiba had blackmail material on some of the teachers, and he always kept a folder of it in his briefcase in preparation for the occasion that any of them bothered him. Their sensei in particular had been harassing a female student, and miraculously having pictures of the incident in a file, Kaiba was going to bring it up to the head master and get the man fired.

It was terrible, that he wouldn't have done anything if it wasn't for the confrontation that morning, but that was how Kaiba used to be. His mind wasn't quite all there, and seeing Jonouchi staring at him, his eyes narrowed some before picking up a book and reading.

"I don't see how you two became friends," snickered Seto, lifting himself off the ground to look at his older self, "He's such a miserable person."

"Like I said before, he got lonely."

"-Why was I so angry, anyway?" asked Seto, sitting up on Jonouchi's desk as he swung his legs in the air, "I had Kaiba Corp, right? Gozaburo's gone. Everything should be great."

"It's not that simple."

"What do you mean, 'it's not that simple'? I got what I wanted, right? Gozaburo's dead and Mokuba's safe. That's what I wanted."

"Yeah well, things changed since you were ten years old. You didn't want Gozaburo to die, Seto. That wasn't what you were planning for."

"How would you know, Jonouchi?" asked the younger Kaiba, giving the blond a dirty look. "You didn't live with him. You don't know what he was like."

"I didn't. But Kaiba told me everything, and he said he never planned for Gozaburo to die. It just happened by accident. He just wanted to take over and make sure his stepfather couldn't come back, not drive him to commit suicide."

"Pfft. I'm glad he's dead."

"You don't mean that."

Seto turned around and stared at Jonouchi for a long time. Their eyes locked, and after having been stared down by the older, much more intimidating Kaiba for many years, he didn't look away. The kid really didn't know what he was talking about, perhaps because his ability to reason hadn't developed as much as the older Kaiba's. He knew that Gozaburo was a negative influence in his life, and childishly assumed that he wouldn't care if the man died. Feeling slightly irritated over it his inability to convince the kid, Jonouchi finally just smirked and crossed his arms.

"Sometimes I forget how stubborn you are, kiddo. You can believe whatever you want, but I'm right. I know what your older self-told me, and I know you hate Gozaburo, but you don't understand everything yet. I mean, you're only ten years old. Not everything has happened to you just yet."

"It looks like I only get worse as I grow older..."

Seto was sulking. His whole posture fell into one of sadness, and sighing, Jonouchi placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it gently before moving closer to the kid. He could tell that Kaiba was feeling slightly distraught, maybe at the fact that his life wasn't getting better anytime soon. Even after five years, he wasn't going to be happy, and there wasn't much he could do about it.

"It gets better, though. I promise."

The room changed, and before Jonouchi could say anything else, they were standing at KaibaLand again. There was a duel happening, and looking up at the competing rivals, it took him by surprise to see Kaiba in one end, three blue eyes white dragons looming over as Yugi stood in the other side, laying down his cards as a telling smirk fell upon his face.

"What's happening?" asked Seto, jumping over the barrier to see, "What's going on?"

"Yugi and Kaiba are dueling."

"So?"

"You're about to lose."

A huge Exodia, one of the greatest duel monsters of all time, was summoned to the field. Looking at both competitors, Jonouchi could see Yugi's grin as Kaiba's face twisted into one of horror, backing up as his dragons tried fruitlessly to defend themselves, only to be obliterated by the force of Yugi's card.

Then Yugi rose up his hand, shattering Kaiba's mind in a flash of light that made Jonouchi turn away before watching the man fall down to his knees, Mokuba rushing to his aid. Feeling his heart go cold and fighting the urge to run over there too, he could only watch as security arrived, unsure of what exactly happened. They all looked confused as hell, and Jonouchi knew Kaiba wouldn't be walking up for some three days. His mind was blown, and now Mokuba was all alone.

"What did he do to me?" asked Seto, looking frantically from Jonouchi and his older self, "Why aren't I getting up?"

"He shattered your mind. You're not going to get up for a few days..."

"What? Why didn't you stop him?"

"How could I? This is a memory, kid."

"But... why did he do that?"

It would be hard to explain what happened to Kaiba, and Jonouchi wasn't even sure if he should try. How would he understand? Seto was just a kid, and aside from wanting Gozaburo to die, he was a pretty innocent kid. Nothing about him would really understand what exactly had happened during his four years under Gozaburo's tutorage and how bad his mind had gone to the point where Yugi had to mind crush him for his own sanity's sake.

"He was trying to help you," replied Jonouchi, turning his back as he watched Isono appear, "And this was how he had to do it. Yugi didn't enjoy doing that. Not really. You had something dark inside of you."

"I know... And it's still hiding in here."

"What are you talking about?"

The scene changed again, and they were at Duelist Kingdom. Seto looked anxious, and looking around, Jonouchi could see the lights of a helicopter approaching. He hated this memory, and becoming apprehensive as Yugi and the others scrambled out of their sleeping bags, Jonouchi was well aware of who was about to set out as soon as the aircraft landed. Scowling, he didn't even want to replay the memory of being humiliated by his soon-to-be lover, who didn't look all too happy at being there.

When Kaiba stepped out of the helicopter, Jonouchi just stared at him. It wasn't even a challenging look, but kind of a sad, defeated expression that he couldn't really hide. Sure, what he was feeling wasn't exactly appropriate for the moment, but he didn't know how else to feel. Here was someone he once had cared so deeply for, but it wasn't reciprocated. And wouldn't be, for some years to come.

It was Yugi who said something first. Jonouchi wasn't even really paying attention to him, just staring as the whole scene unfolded and Kaiba began to walk off. Sure, he knew what he was supposed to say, but he couldn't. Not when his feelings had changed so much since then, and feeling a knot in his throat, Jonouchi just shook his head as Seto stared up at him.

"Weren't you going to say something?" He asked.

"Yeah, I was supposed to challenge him to a duel. But I won't."

"Why not?"

"I lose. There's no point."

"... You never know. You could win."

Seto's eyes shone his face expectant and a bit pleading. Taking a deep breath, Jonouchi made up his mind to play it like it had before. He had no reason to be scared; it had all happened already. Running towards Kaiba at a full sprint, he nearly fell over when he stopped in front of the man. Instead of grabbing his collar threateningly though, he just pushed him back, careful not to get knocked down like he had last time. Jonouchi had learned.

"Where do you think you're going?" He yelled, trying to gain some confidence in himself despite feeling so stupid. "I challenge you to a duel."

"Pfft. And what would be the point of that? You're just wasting my damn time."

Blowing off Jonouchi completely, Kaiba walked pasted him and headed back towards the castle, but the blond knew the rules. He couldn't get away with that. Duelists couldn't turn down challenges, and making himself carry his voice across the field, Jonouchi yelled at Kaiba again.

"Maybe, but if you won't duel me, you can't get to Pegasus's castle. Those are the rules, aren't I right? Unless of course, you're too damn scared to play against me."

This time Kaiba stopped, looking past his shoulder with a threatening glare as his eyes grew darker. Something scary was going on behind those blue eyes, and before Jonouchi could make up his mind to take his challenge back, the man set his briefcase on the ground and worked on taking out his new duel disks. They were so ugly, compared to the new ones they all used now, but they at least worked. And snatching the contraption from midair when Kaiba threw it at his face, Jonouchi didn't bother asking for directions. He already knew how to use the damn thing.

"Nice toy, Kaiba."

"It's not a toy, you amateur," Kaiba snapped, taking his own disk and standing up, "It's a duel disk. One day it'll replace all these old-hat dueling arenas that Pegasus installed, and you'll be using one of these yourself if you're lucky enough to be in the pro-leagues still. Which I highly doubt, considering your lack of skill."

"Yeah, we'll see about that."

But before anything could happen, Seto ran up to Jonouchi and grabbed his hand, the entire scene changing as Kaiba played his first card. The monster was terrifying, but it didn't last, as Jonouchi found himself standing next to his friends while facing the two ends of the castle tower. They were all rooting Yugi's name, and looking over confused, suddenly he remembered what was going on.

Yugi was dueling Kaiba. And Kaiba had to rescue his brother. This was going to be awful.

"What's going on?" asked Seto. "I don't understand. Weren't you about to just duel?"

"I thought I was."

But that was no longer the case. Standing on opposite sides was Kaiba and Yugi, cards blocking them as they stared at each other through empty space. Standing in front of Kaiba was his ultimate dragon, dying and rotten, while Yugi had his swordsman ready for the kill. It wasn't a good memory, and shutting his eyes, Jonouchi wished Seto didn't have to see what was going to happen next.

Kaiba was starting to take steps back. One by one, until he reached the end of the tower, and standing on the final brick, he defiantly challenged Yugi to kill him, not giving two shits as the swordsman came after his dragon.

Looking down at Seto's face, Jonouchi knew he was frightened. Confused. He had no idea what was going on, and when Anzu's voice broke through for Yugi to stop, everything came to a crashing halt. Yugi fell to his knees, and Kaiba made his final attack, killing the swordsman with his dragon, winning the duel.

Jonouchi felt too removed from the duel, not even caring as his one-time best friend cried on the ground over almost killing another man. He just stood there confused, trying to make sense of it all as Kaiba collected his things, his face unreadable as he stood before them all, looking down at Yugi like he was the most pitiful thing in the world.

"I won, Yugi. You showed weakness at the end... If you had the cold-heartedness to push me off the ravine, you could have won... Caring about the enemy's safety is the most foolish thing a duelist can do. Games mean conflict. Between two enemies, it's the same for all of them. Cards, chess... The blood soaked wars of the human race, all theses are different kinds of games. Do you know what God gave to people so they could play games in this world? A single chip called life."

Seto stood staring at his older self, his face full of disappointment. For a moment, Jonouchi could have sworn that Kaiba had noticed him, frowning before turning to leave, as if he was too ashamed to face his younger self now that he had abandoned his true self. It was heartbreaking, watching that small exchange between the two, and putting a hand on Seto's shoulder again to give the kid reassurance, Jonouchi whispered to him again.

"You get better. It's not always going to be like this."

When the kid looked back up at him, it took everything in Jonouchi to pull himself together and smile. He could hear the exchanges of angry words behind him as Anzu chewed Kaiba out, and it was hard to just bite his tongue and not say anything. It really wasn't his place. What good would it do, defending a man who still hated him? Frowning and shaking his head, Jonouchi just grabbed Seto's hand and ushered him away, hoping that the scene would change already.

And it did. More quickly that he'd hope too, because he found himself in his bedroom at Pegasus's castle. Everything was dark, but he could feel Seto scrambling onto the bed, as if unsure about being in the room blinded when there was another person to latch himself onto for comfort. Snorting in amusement, Jonouchi made space, not caring too much if the ten year old was going to lie down next to him. Wasn't that much different from the twenty year old version he slept with every night, only he wasn't trying to cuddle.

"I didn't think you were scared of the dark," teased Jonouchi, "Tired?"

"I don't get tired," replied Seto, frowning, "I'm not real, remember? This is all in your friend's head."

"Of course," Jonouchi decided to humor him, "Whatever you say. Even if you aren't tired, I certainly am. I'm going to sleep."

"I didn't think it was possible to sleep in another person's mind."

"I guess we'll find out then, Seto. Because I'm exhausted. Goodnight."

Turning his back on the kid, Jonouchi got under the sheets and closed his eyes. It felt the same, the bed from last time he'd lain there. Everything was quiet and comfortable, except the grumbling from Seto, who didn't seem content with being ignored while Jonouchi tried sleeping beside him.

"I can't sleep."

"That's tough, kid."

"I hate it when you call me that."

Turning around, Jonouchi gave him a smirk, before turning back around.

"You're a kid for now, Seto. Deal with it."

"It's not fair," he lamented, shifting so he could shake Jonouchi's shoulders, "I'm never going to grow up because I'm stuck in here. So stop calling me that."

"Fine."

Jonouchi sighed and closed his eyes again, but before he could drift off to sleep, Seto started acting up, again, grabbing his shoulder blades and tugging them back and forth.

"-What?"

"Am I really that terrible a person when I grow up?"

His voice sounded shaky. It wasn't so self-assured, and having had this conversation before, Jonouchi knew he wasn't going to get any sleep. Seto was going to keep bothering him until he got the answers he was looking for, so getting up and sitting against the head board of the bed, Jonouchi tried getting comfortable as Seto invaded his personal space, setting his crossed arms on the man's thigh as he looked up at him with worried blue eyes.

"You're not a terrible person, Seto. You just end up doing a lot of terrible things. It's tough to explain," said Jonouchi, looking away briefly as he tried to get a grip, "Everyone does things in their life they end up regretting, some more than others. And you had a rather rough start, so it isn't going to be easy for you. Most people don't really try to make it easy for you either, so it's bad for a while, until things start to slow down."

"Do I ever end up hurting you?"

It was a bad question. Thinking back to just a month ago, Jonouchi could recall one terrible event with such detail, it would make most people break into goosebumps. And it was hard enough trying to push it back in his mind, but would lying to the kid really be fair? He was tough. But maybe not tough enough.

"-Unfortunately, more times than I can count. People always end up hurting the ones they care for the most. It's inevitable."

"But you said we're friends later on, right? Friends don't hurt friends."

"Sometimes they do. I have hurt my friends, back when I was in high school, because I was stupid. Everyone does stupid things to people they care about, even me. It doesn't matter how smart you are or what you try to do, it's going to happen. People aren't perfect, and that's why you have to learn how to forgive."

"I don't get it. Why would I hurt you?"

"We don't always... get along."

* * *

Pissed and not feeling at all social, Jonouchi stormed into the bedroom, rushing to take off his shirt before getting under the sheets and throwing the pillow over his head. He didn't want to listen to what Kaiba had to say, since it wasn't going to be anything good. Whenever they got into fights, it degenerated into screaming matches. Not feeling all that in the mood to entertain one, the blond just gave up and hid in bed.

Which wasn't always the best of ideas, but sometimes he didn't think very clearly. Whenever he got upset, his whole entire mind would just shut down and no matter what kind of reasoning was presented to him, it didn't matter. Jonouchi wasn't going to listen, and despite having grown out of just yelling back in a fit of anger, he would still shut people completely out, if he could get away with it.

Lying there listening, he heard Kaiba coming in behind him. He wasn't saying anything yet, but soon his booming voice would echo the room and preparing for it, Jonouchi grabbed his pillow tighter and shoved it hard against his ears. Sure, he was being incredibly immature, but why did he have to be the one being bullied all the damn time? Just because he chose to live with Kaiba, didn't mean he belonged to him. He was still his own person.

"Stop hiding your damn face, and look at me."

"Fuck off, Kaiba."

It was the wrong thing to say, but it came out before he could think over his words. He really hated arguing over stupid bullshit like moving out of the hotel, but it was his decision. Sure, going from luxury to another shitty ass apartment was going to suck and they would be seeing less of one another because of it, but Jonouchi wanted his space. Kaiba was too much. Too overbearing. Too bossy. Just too everything.

Kaiba was already too frustrated to deal with Jonouchi's immature tactics for avoiding him, and was certainly not in the mood to be graceful about being told to fuck off. He stalked across the room and knelt on the bed before trying to turn Jonouchi over and force him to face him. Jonouchi was determined not to be moved, however, which only served to make Kaiba angrier.

"Are you serious? Can you be any more childish? You do know this is where I sleep too, right?"

Jonouchi's only response was to briefly move so he could shove him. It was unexpected, and Jonouchi was fairly strong, so it actually did cause Kaiba to fall over, nearly off the bed in fact. When he regained his balance, he growled in frustration, mounting Jonouchi from the back. Usually, he would address such a situation with patience, but they'd been fighting quite a lot. Jonouchi had made accusations that were too close to home-telling him that he was controlling, that he treated him more like a piece of property than a lover. While logically, Kaiba knew that Jonouchi was probably only exaggerating because he was emotional, something in his head told him that those words rang true.

Which was why he was more upset than he should have been.

Jonouchi tried to lift himself up when Kaiba sat on him, but he grabbed his forearms and pinned them to the bed so he would be completely immobilized. He knew from past experience that Jonouchi wasn't flexible enough to escape him from this position, and he had no intention of letting him go. He was seeing red, resorting to force when perhaps reason should have been applied, but he felt unable to stop himself.

"I'm not going to say it again, Jonouchi," he warned, feeling more concerned about what he might do than anything, "Stop being a child and look at me."

The other man continued to struggle, but still averted his gaze stubbornly, as if obliging would be losing some fool competition. Kaiba bristled, tightening his grip on Jonouchi's forearms to make a point.

"What are you going to do if I don't? Beat on me? As if."

* * *

"Are you still mad at me then?" Asked Seto.

"Nah, of course not."

He didn't want to think about it anymore. He couldn't really say whether or not he was still angry. He certainly was still hurt, and in all honesty, seeing the Kaiba of the past only made him wonder more whether or not he was the person who should be trying to fish him out of his own head. But it wouldn't be fair to place that conflict on Seto's shoulders. It wasn't like the kid knew about their relationship, and he certainly didn't have all the personality dysfunctions of the older Kaiba. Not yet, anyway.

Tired and emotionally exhausted, Jonouchi turned back over again to sleep. Now sitting upright, still resting one small hand on his shoulder, was Seto. The boy was staring at him with shrewd eyes as he frowned at him, unable to ask what was bothering Jonouchi as he was too afraid of the answer.

"Don't fall asleep yet," whined the boy, "I'm not tired."

"I can't help you with that."

"Will you tell me why we're friends?"

Rolling onto his back, Jonouchi decided he could do that much. After everything Seto was seeing of himself as an older, angrier man, it was only fair to explain how everything would get better, before he lost all hope for himself. He didn't want his friend, even the miniature version, becoming all depressed, because he didn't doubt in his mind that Seto, as young as he was, would be capable of inflicting emotional torment on himself.

"All right. I can tell you. It's just… we have a lot in common. Things we never saw in ourselves until much later, because we were rivals for so long. You've been through a lot of similar stuff as I have, and it's nice having someone who understands. Do you fight a lot, Seto?"

"When people pick on Mokuba, yes."

"Well, I used to fight all the time. Beat on anyone and anything that got in my way, even at your age. I didn't let anyone pick on me or try bullying me around and my parents were never much around. They didn't care. I practically raised myself, and I had a younger sister. She is one of the most important people in my life."

"Why didn't your parents take care of you if they were alive? I don't get it."

"I had pretty lousy parents," shrugged Jonouchi, "They didn't like me too much I guess. At your age, I was a punk and they couldn't handle that very well. Didn't really try to get me under control, and by the time I was thirteen, I was doing some pretty bad things. My mother left town and I was living with my father, who didn't really care about me. He was too busy gambling and getting drunk, so I didn't really get the childhood I deserved, I guess. Much like you."

"Oh…"

Seto became silent for a while, his big eyes looking across the room slowly as if scanning for invisible enemies before leaning closer to Jonouchi. He was beginning to look tired, and watching his face as the tell-tale signs of exhaustion fell upon him, Jonouchi couldn't help but touch the kid's hair as he rested his head against his chest. It was something they usually didn't do, since Kaiba hardly ever slept on so much as against Jonouchi, but he didn't mind.

"Sure you're not tired," teased Jonouchi, "Because you're sounding tired."

"I'm not," answered Seto defiantly, "I'm just resting my head. And why are you petting my hair like that?"

"It's just something I do. If you don't like it, I'll stop."

"I just think it's weird."

"Of course you do, no one's ever done something like that to you before. If you'd relax and try going to sleep, I can promise you'd like it."

Seto's hair felt the same against Jonouchi's fingers, despite being ten years younger than his grown adult self. Everything felt very different, yet the same and it made Jonouchi ache to get the one he was searching for back. Despite feeling hurt over what happened before with Kaiba, he needed him back. Going on without him had been too hard, and having time to think over it, he realized that things weren't exactly what they seemed. And maybe he needed to give the man a second chance.

Very soon, Seto was asleep. His heavy breathing was echoing through the room, and his hands were clutching Jonouchi's chest as half his body lay on top of him. Watching him, Jonouchi just sighed and tried to figure out what he was going to do. How the hell was he going to find Kaiba's subconsciousness when he kept running into memories? Everyone he was finding wasn't right, and it was distressing to relive every single bad memory he had from the past. What was going to come next? Something terrifyingly personal?

He didn't want to deal with anything like that just yet. His mind was still trying to forgive Kaiba for a lot of mistakes that had happened, and despite wanting him back and coming after him, it still troubled him that he couldn't trust the man. Not anymore. Not after what had happened. It was like his heart was split in two ways, and unable to make a decision over it, Jonouchi just went with his gut.

Maybe he'd end up regretting his decision. Or maybe not.

Right now, it didn't matter. He wasn't anywhere close to finding Kaiba yet, and feeling a bit helpless over the fact, Jonouchi tried falling asleep. Sure, he wasn't actually in a castle at Duelist Kingdom, but his mind didn't care, and believing he was still in happier times was easier than accepting his true situation. That he was trying to rescue someone who maybe didn't deserve his help.

* * *

It felt cold. Looking around, Jonouchi noticed himself next to Mai, Yugi, and a Mokuba looking person... who wasn't quite Mokuba. Since when did the kid have a sister? Making a face, he almost said something about it, but then a terrifying roar echoed through the tunnel, and cowering, he felt a small hand grab his before the walls of the cave were torn apart.

There was a huge Blue-Eyes-White-Dragon coming out of it, and for a second, Jonouchi was afraid he'd have to protect himself, but then came out the Kaiba brothers.

And the eldest one had the most disgusted expression on his face, glancing at them all before opening his mouth to say something... But then he stopped. His eyes were trailing on Jonouchi. No, something next to Jonouchi.

Seto was standing next to him.

"Is this a dream or-"

* * *

"-RISE DUELISTS. THIS IS THE DAWN OF A NEW DAY-WHEN THE WORLD'S ULTIMATE DUELISTS WILL BE CROWNED!"

Startled awake, Jonouchi sprung up from bed as his companion was nearly flung off, grabbing onto the man's waist to keep himself steady. They both were looking around confused, as if they had only been sleeping for several minutes, but it was now seven in the morning as Kaiba's booming voice blasted through the speakers, followed by Mokuba's. It sounded very familiar, the wake up call, and unable to keep himself from yawning, Jonouchi rubbed his eyes before looking out the window.

They were on the duel blimp, several thousand feet up in the sky. Seto immediately crawled across the bed to the window so he could look outside, literally beaming as he realized where they were. It was like he'd never been up in the air before, his grin was so wide, and becoming a little less nervous over it despite not actually being up in the air, Jonouchi walked over to join him.

"I've never flown before," mused Seto, "Have you? This is amazing. Can you imagine how many kilos this airship must weigh? The amount of fuel the engines must need to burn to keep this aircraft in the sky has to be immense! There has to be so much helium in this thing... I'd like to see the rest of it. Maybe if you found someone around who was nice enough-"

"-I don't think that's going to happen."

"And why not?"

"Because the person you're looking for is you. Grown up and stuff. And you're not that nice. But I can show you the dueling platform. How about that?"

Seto looked rather skeptical about it, but nodded his head. He had to like heights, since his older self never seemed to care and had a liking for aircraft that most people would avoid if they could. Jonouchi knew he kept a Blue-Eyes White Dragon jet hidden in Kaiba Corp's airplane hangar, and also enjoyed flying his own helicopter at times. It was nothing he personally was interested in, but Kaiba liked physics. He liked knowing what made things fly, and enjoyed making things that technically shouldn't fly do it anyway. Not wanting to disappoint the kiddo, he decided to take Seto up there.

Opening the front door was easy, and walking through the passage way was too, as no one was awake to stop them. Or rather stop Jonouchi, since people didn't really pay the child any mind. Jonouchi was starting to wonder if anyone could even see him, but it looked before as if Kaiba had on the castle tower, even if only briefly. Maybe he'd noticed himself, but instead of saying anything, he'd just brushed him off as a trick of the mind.

"Would you like to fly if you could, Jonouchi?" Asked Seto, a little eager-sounding as if he was looking for approval.

Looking back at the ten year old, the blond thought about it, not quite sure really if he would. Heights didn't interest him, and he only went up in the air when he had to. Being out in the sky all the time would be nerve wracking, and shaking his head, he only smirked at Seto while giving his honest answer.

"I don't think so. I'm pretty content to be on the ground."

"... If I could fly, I would," replied Seto, walking a bit briskly to keep up with Jonouchi's pace, "I'd go all around the world. And take Mokuba with me too, he'd like that. Wouldn't you?"

"I guess. Why, are you offering?"

"Offering? No. Why would I want to go with you?"

Jonouchi raised up his hands in mock alarm, trying to fight the urge to laugh. Seto sounded so bratty, and rolling his eyes, he thought not much of it. Maybe he was just having a mood, and turning back to look at the boy, he was met with shrewd blue eyes, his expression a bit disgruntled.

"If you want me to go with you," teased Jonouchi, "I will. But if you don't think I'm cool enough to hang out with you Seto, that's fine too. I'm sure your brother is better company than my stupid ass."

" … You're not stupid! Why would you call yourself that? Who could even think that,? You're like, the coolest guy I know."

" Oh really? And how many guys do you know, Seto?"

"-Just you. But still, that doesn't make my point less valid!"

"If you say so," replied Jonouchi in a sing song voice, "I appreciate your admiration."

"I'm being serious, Jonouchi."

Stopping near the elevator, Seto looked up at him with pitiful eyes, but it didn't last when his older companion just smirked and grabbed his hand, pulling him in. The kid's eyes widened slightly in surprise, but he quickly recovered as he found himself being lifted up toward the duel deck with Jonouchi at his side. He was expecting the bright sunlight and clear skies, but it came as a bit of a shock when he saw Kaiba standing near the edge, arms folded and eyes staring blankly toward the open ocean. His coat was flapping in the wind, and hoping the man wouldn't notice, Jonouchi turned to leave.

"What's he doing here?" Asked Seto defensively, grabbing onto Jonouchi's hand, "I thought he was gone."

"Apparently not."

"Is he going to yell at you for being up here?"

"Probably."

Jonouchi must have spoken too loudly, because before he could disappear, Kaiba turned around and glared at him. His face was tense, and it looked like he was trying to withhold a barrage of insults, but somehow managed to keep himself under control. Not comfortable with the "friendly" invitation to stay, Jonouchi thought about disappearing back into the blimp, but Seto couldn't be thwarted. He tugged on the blond's hand harder, pulling him determinedly toward the railing as Kaiba stared at them.

Almost immediately, Seto went looking over the rail. He seemed completely at ease with the open air, and feeling slightly nervous about the kid being so close to the edge, Jonouchi made himself stay by his side, in case something could happen. Not that it would, since it wasn't actually reality, but he didn't want part of Kaiba's subconscious tumbling into the recesses of his mind or somewhere that couldn't be reached.

It was becoming harder and harder for Jonouchi to remember that nothing here was real.

"You like holding my hand, kiddo?"

"What? No."

And releasing the aforementioned hand immediately, Seto wiped his own on his pants as if he had been given cooties. His expression went sour, and Jonouchi couldn't stop himself from laughing, realizing that maybe his joke was too close to home. Sure, the kid was still too young for sexuality, but he was certainly developing one, and having Jonouchi messing with him like that wasn't really fair. Especially since Jonouchi knew what the boy's preference would be, once he understood himself better.

So crossing his arms instead and leaning against the railing, Jonouchi looked out at the open water while Seto continued staring up at him. He was always so focused on whatever happened to get his attention. Jonouchi glanced back down at him in case he was planning on speaking, and raised a single eye brow at him.

"-Why am I so mean to you?"

"What are you talking about, Seto?"

The kid turned to look at Kaiba, who was busy ignoring them a few feet away. His expression hadn't changed, and it was like he was trying hard to make them feel like he hadn't noticed their presence, even though he had all ready acknowledged them.

"Every time I see myself with you, I'm mean. I don't get it. You say we become friends, and all we do is yell at each other or glare. Why is that?"

"Eh..."

Looking back at Kaiba, Jonouchi shrugged his shoulders before speaking again.

"We were just too immature to see eye to eye. It happens. I mean, do you always get along with Mokuba?"

"No."

"Does that mean you hate him?"

"...No."

"Same thing."

He was lying, but he couldn't come up with a better explanation. There were things Seto just wasn't ready to know about. His relationship with Kaiba was rocky at best, and after their last "fight", he just didn't want to think too much about it. Doubt would start eating at him, telling him that maybe they weren't supposed to work and Jonouchi was trying too hard to make something impossible happen, but he couldn't believe it. Not yet.

"I don't think it is though. Mokuba and I are brothers. We'll always be there for each other, and that could never change no matter what. But you guys aren't, and he doesn't want friends. If he did, he wouldn't be so miserable."

"... Well Seto, if it makes more sense to you, Kaiba rubbed off on me the wrong way. And I on him. Our personalities at this time weren't good for one another, and it wasn't until we grew up some, did we get over it. Eventually he wanted someone to talk to, and I needed the company. It just kinda happened, not everything can be explained."

"I like explanations," replied Seto, "How else am I supposed to understand everything?"

"Understand everything? Why do you need to understand everything?"

"So I can know everything, too."

Jonouchi gave the boy a bemused look before turning his attention back out at the water. It felt like he'd been there for a long time, and it didn't make any sense why he wasn't coming any closer to finding Kaiba yet. Where in his memories could he be hiding? He was only seeing things he had already known about, and it didn't make sense that his true self would want to be trapped in the duel blimp.

"Seto," asked Jonouchi, looking down at him with a serious face now that he was feeling the strain of time against him, "Do you know where my Kaiba is?"

"Your Kaiba? Uh... He's hiding somewhere. Didn't I tell you that before?"

"No, you didn't tell me that." He could feel his temper flaring up slightly. "And I need to know where he is. Do you have any idea? You said before you could help me."

"I'm trying to! His brain is too big, and I can't go looking through everything. He's always thinking about something, and then everything gets all jumbled. It doesn't help either that the other one doesn't want him found, and he keeps changing everything."

"Who's the other one?"

"The other Kaiba. The really mean one."

"What are you talking about, Seto? Which really mean one? They're all mean!"

But before the kid could explain, the Kaiba that was standing on the duel platform nearby had moved, walking Jonouchi's way before folding his arms and curling his lip in disdain, his expression one of disgust. Neither of the other two males could understand why he had approached them, since he seemed so keen on just ignoring them...

"Is there any reason in particular why you insist on being up here this early in the morning?" Asked the man, looking down at Jonouchi with a demeanor of superiority across his features. "I'm trying to concentrate. You're already ruining the beginning of my day, and I'd appreciate it if you'd go back down stairs with the other losers and get off my platform."

"Pretty sure I'm allowed out here."

"I could have the rules changed. This is my blimp."

"Kaiba, I'm not doing shit to you," replied Jonouchi, scoffing, "So I don't see what the deal is. If you'd just ignore me and play nice for once, maybe I wouldn't bother you so much."

"You have no reason to be up here."

"Neither do you."

His eyebrow raised as if he was contemplating Jonouchi's rebuttal, but instead of saying anything, he just turned on his heel and started walking off. Clearly, he was just dismissing the idea that maybe he was simply looking for a fight, and Jonouchi didn't want him getting away that easily. Not this time.

"What, you don't have anything to say to that?" Jonouchi challenged. "Why bother picking a fight if you know you're going to give up when things get too hot for you?"

"Pfft. You're not worth the effort of conversing with. I'd have a better time talking to a child than you, seeing as you practically are one. Your development clearly never got past the seventh grade..."

"Ha! You seriously think a child would put up with you? Your attitude would make any kid violent in seconds, Kaiba. The only reason you don't get a daily ass kicking is because adults are supposed to be mature."

"And let me guess, you're the shining image of maturity, right? Doubtful. You still tell fart jokes at the table and think its humorous. I highly doubt someone as low brow and common as you would know anything about acting like an adult."

"Yeah, because a jerk like you who gets off on making people suffer is way more grown up," Jonouchi bristled at the all-too-familiar classism, "Sense of humor isn't related to maturity."

"I guess you're just tasteless then."

Not saying another word, Kaiba turned heel again and stormed off, giving Seto a passing glance before disappearing down the elevator.

"Better tasteless than heartless, asshole," Jonouchi muttered bitterly, "I forgot how bad you used to be."

"Me?"

At this rather disappointed query, Jonouchi turned to look at Seto, immediately regretting his words. He'd practically forgotten that this kid and the man he'd just argued with were the same person. Seeing them side-by-side, it didn't even seem possible.

"No, not you," he replied apologetically, "I shouldn't have said that. You have a lot on your plate when you grow up."

"I would think so. I mean, I'm the CEO now, right? That means I'm the boss," Seto beamed, "Which was what I wanted. Kinda. I think... I am in charge now, right?"

"You are," Jonouchi grinned, "And you're damn good at it. Even at your worst, you still built a hospital in the city. I don't think you ever really stopped being yourself. You just got confused about things here and there."

"Like with what? I still care for Mokuba, right? I couldn't get confused over that.."

"Of course you still care about him," Jonouchi dodged telling the poor kid about the time he'd actually been crazy enough to shun his little brother, "You're still his protector, and he grew up to be a good kid. A bratty one, but still good."

"I don't get it though... It's not fair. He's normal while I'm like that?"

"I think it's because you made sure he could have a decent childhood. No one was around to really help or take care of you. You made sure Mokuba had what you didn't."

Pouting, Seto just folded his arms and stared out at the water again. Of course it wouldn't make too much sense to him, being only ten years old, but that was the truth. Watching the child, it dawned on him how unfair it was talking to Seto about things that hadn't happened yet. Bringing him through memories that he hadn't experienced was not healthy, and maybe it would end up ruining Kaiba's all ready tumultuous psyche, somehow.

"Don't worry yourself over things that happen in the future, kid," Jonouchi rested a hand on his shoulder, "Everything comes out all right at the end. You had to have some experiences and mistakes to teach yourself to be better."

"Did I really get better or are you just trying to make me feel better? I hate being lied to."

While it was Jonouchi's first impulse to insist that he was telling the truth, doubt did flicker through his mind due to recent memory. He chose not to let it change his mind.

"You really do get better. The way that guy just talked to me? That doesn't happen, not anymore. Trust me, you sort yourself out."

* * *

"What are you going to do if I don't? Beat on me? As if."

Jonouchi didn't move. Feeling the man on top of him get even more angrier, he felt Kaiba let go of his arms just long enough to be flipped over hard onto his back, the weight dumped right on top of him again before Jonouchi could escape. Kaiba was too damn dense, and his thighs were stronger than his partner could have estimated, the muscle pressing hard on slim hips. Fighting against the pressure, he still wouldn't look Kaiba in the face.

"Get off, asshole."

"Why should I?" Kaiba scoffed, pressing down hard on Jonouchi's arms as he pinned them to the bed. "I've tried reasoning with you, and it obviously hasn't had any effect. So, I'm using force. Are you really surprised? You all ready think I consider you 'property'."

He felt as if he shouldn't have said that. It had slipped out. Usually, that sort of thing didn't happen to him, but he felt oddly out of control.

"Now you're just proving that you really do. I knew you were bossy, but I never took you as abusive," Jonouchi said in a far more snarky manner than what was appropriate, "and you wonder why I want to leave you. You're pathetic."

"I don't need to wonder why you want to leave me," Kaiba growled, no longer curbing his words, "I've never treated you as anything but a friend and a lover. And, perhaps more importantly, as a man. But you still insist on your needless insecurities, not because you think I feel that way about you, but because you doubt yourself."

He felt strangely detached, his voice settling into a sickly calm tone. It was an extreme contrast to his earlier rage, one he noted but could neither explain nor really process. Everything seemed almost to happen around him, his words leaving his mouth without his consent.

"I don't doubt anything about myself. The only thing I doubt, when it comes to you and I, is if you really love me or not. Because if you did, you wouldn't be doing this shit to me. You call yourself my "lover", and look at you. Pinning me to the bed again because you can't get your damn way? Like I told you before, fuck off."

Jonouchi could feel his blood turning hot, and squirming under the pressure of Kaiba's weight; he tried hard to twist himself free, but failed. It was like last time they fought, only he wasn't quite sure if simply having wild sex was going to solve the issue. Looking briefly at Kaiba's eyes, he saw something dangerous behind them; something that he hadn't seen in a long time. Breathing heavily, he tried one last time to push himself free using the power of his hips, but failed.

Kaiba was too heavy. Becoming both resentful and surrendering due to his partner's force, he really avoided all eye contact, looking toward the door as if escape would be possible, though he knew it wasn't. He'd have to wait until the man was calm, and maybe after he'd taken a breather, they could talk again.

Although Jonouchi was quite sure he'd had enough. He wasn't going to be treated like some plaything anymore and, becoming tired of being overpowered like some girl, the blond only glanced at Kaiba before exhaling deeply in resignation, eyes firmly locked on the door beyond.

* * *

"-Jonouchi, are you okay?" Seto was staring at him, hands on his hips. "Are you listening to me, or just zoning out? It's not funny."

Jonouchi shook himself from his thoughts. Memories were strange here, almost paralyzing in that they felt almost like reliving the events. He wondered if that was how remembering always was for Kaiba.

"I'm fine," he replied before clearing his throat, "Like I said, don't worry. You'll improve with age. The current you is more similar to how you are, anyway. Just more snarky and...tall."

"I'm tall, huh? Does that mean all the girls like me then?" Seto started snickering, unable to stop himself from smiling, "My dad was tall. My mother said I was going to get his height, and I guess she was right."

"Uh, yeah," Jonouchi faltered a little, "Trust me, everyone likes you. Tall guys get attention."

"... what does that mean?"

"Well, when you have bright blue eyes and are so tall that everyone in a given crowd is looking up to you, your presence is definitely noticed."

It was a close save. He found that it was easy to forget, at this point, that Kaiba hadn't always been aware of his own sexual preference. Jonouchi wondered if he even understood why he thought about girls, at this point, or if he just knew it was what men did.

"Do I have a girlfriend then?" Asked Seto, still unable to hid his grin, "I bet I do."

"You've had girlfriends," Jonouchi chose not to get into what he knew was a complicated and rather awkward sex life ( or lack of) that the older Kaiba had once maintained, "You don't right now, though. You decided to wait for the right person."

"Wait? Why would I want to do that? Its just dating. I mean, I've seen people do it before, holding hands and all that corny shit... Saw Mokuba do it with a girl once. It was weird, I told him to stop because he looked stupid."

"You tried your hand at dating, but you thought it was a waste of time to just go out with whoever. It really is, when you think about it. Wouldn't it make more sense to know you liked someone before taking them out randomly?"

"-But how would I know they even like me?"

"Usually, people aren't very good at hiding that kind of thing," Jonouchi mused, recalling the events that had set his own relationship in motion, "And it never hurts to just ask. Someone won't go on a date with you if they don't even know whether or not they like you a little."

"Pfft. How would you know? You talk like you know a lot about this sort of thing, but I bet you've never even kissed a girl before."

"Hey," Jonouchi defended, put off by the kid's lack of faith in his sex life, "I've been with girls before. I have more experience than you, small fry."

"I bet not as much as me when I get older."

Now Jonouchi knew that was probably true. But it wasn't something he wanted to let Kaiba rub in his face-not even adorable midget Kaiba.

"I guess you'll find out, kid. It's not like you and I sit around kissing and telling."

That wasn't really true, but it was the only way he could fathom dodging further taunting.

"... why would I want to kiss you?"

The expression went right over his head.

"What," Jonouchi mocked him a little, "You don't think I'm pretty enough? But whatever. You misunderstood me. I meant that you and I don't gossip to each other about our old relationships."

"-Men aren't pretty. They're... just men. Stop saying stupid things."

The poor kid was squirming a little. Jonouchi decided to take pity on him and not confuse his sexual identity any more than it probably was all ready. After all, Kaiba would have plenty of fun with that in the future without his help, and he didn't want to screw up his subconscious.

"I was just joking with you. Man, you're pretty serious for a little kid. It's like no one ever taught you humor."

"You don't learn humor, stupid. Either you understand it or you don't."

"Then I guess you don't understand it, ya little twerp," Jonouchi teased. Honestly, if the Kaiba he knew now had said that to him, he would have caught a lot of fire for it. But seeing such a self-assured miniature Kaiba saying it was mostly just funny. He was like a child trying to imitate Kaiba, almost. Not so much because he wasn't acting the same way, but because he hadn't developed the same venom that the man had now.

"Jonouchi?"

"Seto?"

"-What are you going to do when you find Kaiba? The one you're looking for. You can't just disappear out of his head. Besides, he won't let you."

That sounded ominous.

"What do you mean, he won't 'let' me?" Jonouchi queried. "I came here of my own free will. I can leave with no problem, right? Besides, once I find my Kaiba, he'll probably wake up anyway."

"The really mean Kaiba, I've only seen him once. He hangs around in dark places, and I know he doesn't like strangers in here... So I don't know if you can leave. I don't write the rules. If I did, I'd be CEO by now. But I'm only ten."

"You won't have to wait long," Jonouchi muttered, recalling that Kaiba took over the company in just five short years after he was...well, the kid who was standing right in front of him. That was a terrifying contrast. "This really mean guy, does he bother the other Kaibas in here a lot? Or mess with memories? He seems to be yanking us around, switching us from scene to scene."

"He doesn't talk to anyone. Just hangs around and watches things happen. I don't know, when he comes around, I try to run away. I don't like how he looks at people. His eyes aren't right."

That sounded familiar. Jonouchi was fairly certain that the image of Kaiba's blue eyes above him, haunted and barren despite their vibrant color, was burned into his memory forever. It was a recollection he shied away from.

"I'm just wondering what he does in here. The other Kaibas still have a lot of influence over my Kaiba's personality. This guy sounds like he just kind of lurks around and glares at people. Why does he stay locked up? Is he hiding?"

"I don't know. Like I said before, I've only seen him once, and he creeps me out. Do you think I sat there studying him?"

And becoming rather upset, Seto stormed off towards the elevator, like Kaiba had before him.

"Hey, come on, Seto," Jonouchi followed him, reaching out to touch his shoulder, "I didn't mean to make you upset. Is he really that scary?"

He wasn't trying to be patronizing. He genuinely wondered just what the hell was lurking in the dark corners of Kaiba's mind. It would also be nice to know how dangerous it was, and whether or not it would be able to hurt him in here.

Or if it had hurt him in real life.

"I'm not scared of him," Seto huffed, becoming very indignant, "He's just a creep. And he tried talking to me once, and I didn't like it. And I'm not upset."

Jonouchi wanted to question Seto further, but he was really starting to recede. He knew that behavior. His eyes were getting cold, his lips pressed into a line as he crossed his arms tightly. It was something Kaiba did when he felt attacked or put on the spot. While the older him seemed to have learned to lash out rather than defend himself in most cases, it seemed that little Seto preferred to curl up proverbially like a turtle and act tough.

"Well, don't worry about it. If we run into that creep of yours, just let me know. I'll give him the pounding of his life."

Seto gave Jonouchi a dubious look, but said nothing. He wanted to believe him, that he could scare the creep away, but things weren't exactly black and white where they were. Reality here didn't work quite like it did in the real world, and well aware of that, it made the kid begin to doubt that Jonouchi really knew what he was up against. Or if he could beat it.

"I want to go back downstairs again."

Following behind, Jonouchi didn't argue against it. The air was getting too thick for him, and it was cold. Going back into the elevator, he closed his eyes as the floors began to drop, feeling slightly strange. But instead of opening his eyes, he cringed as a force of power collided into his chest, blowing him into the ground.

"What the fuck..!"

"Surprise, surprise," came the familiar mocking tone, "As it turns out, I'm still better than you in every possible way. You were a fool to challenge me, Jonouchi."

Getting off the ground, it took the blond a moment to realize where he was. He had a duel disk strapped to his arm, and looking around a bit dazed, he suddenly remembered this memory. Kaiba had beat him at a duel. Again. It was right after he'd lost to Yugi, and now he had secured his place as third runner up. All Jonouchi could do was scowl.

"I'd be a fool to believe that," yelled Jonouchi in rebuttal, fed up with constantly being dragged around the man's mind, "Do you really think you're better than me because you beat me at a card game? Are you that pathetic? Look at you. You're miserable. No one wants to be around you. I might not be as good as you, but I'm a hell of a better person than you'll ever be."

Seto looked stunned, standing motionless in the sidelines as everyone else stared slack-jawed. No one had ever talked to Kaiba like that before, and despite Jonouchi being defiant, he had never been so... wounding. No one knew how to react, and Kaiba himself just stood there like someone had slapped him across the face, his expression flabbergasted.

"Y- you have no idea what you're talking about," he stammered, eyes darting from Jonouchi to Seto, as if aware of his other entity, "You're a loser, Jonouchi, and you'll always be a loser. One day you'll realize what a damn fool you are, and I hope I'll be there to spit in your face when that happens. Fuck you."

Before Jonouchi could say anything back, the enraged man left the crowd, leaving a confused Mokuba to run following behind him. It was probably the first time Seto had seen his brother in the memories, so understandably, he ran off after the look-alike, not paying attention to see if Jonouchi was going to catch up with him.

Which he did. For some reason, he felt compelled not to leave the kid behind, and running to catch up, it took him a bit off guard when Kaiba turned around, his face conflicted, thinking that the man who had insulted him was coming back for more.

"What the fuck do you want now?" He bellowed, getting right in Jonouchi's face as Seto hid behind him, "I suggest you get the hell away from me before I really make you regret your words."

"Look, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

It took a lot to apologize, but he did so anyway, despite knowing that Kaiba wouldn't accept it. What he'd said was true, but it wasn't fair for him to attack the man like that, especially while thinking about things he hadn't done yet. And Seto, who was now standing behind him confused and startled, didn't need to hear that sort of thing.

"Kaiba, you don't have to be like this. I want to be your friend, and if you'd just stop pushing people away, maybe you'd be happy. You're miserable. Everyone can see that. Even your own brother has said before that you can't even smile genuinely. No matter how much you try to rationalize it, you know I'm right. I know you better than you think.

You're not pathetic. But you're fucking frustrating, and I don't even know why I'm trying so hard to make you see how fucking ridiculous you're being."

Kaiba didn't speak. He looked stunned; still angry, certainly, but also extremely confused. As he should be. At this point in time, Jonouchi would never have said that to him. He certainly wouldn't have put so much effort into getting him to wake up and be less of a prick. His blue eyes flitted from Jonouchi to Seto and back again, and after a long period of silence, he simply turned away again and left.

"I can't fucking believe him," Jonouchi spat after the older Kaiba had glided out of sight.

"Jonouchi," interrupted Seto, eyes still wide after the display of emotions, "Where's he going? Mokuba's with him."

"How should I know, I don't know everything..."

It took him a moment to realize that he'd snapped, and immediately feeling terrible about it, Jonouchi sighed. Getting upset with Seto wasn't going to help his situation, and grabbing the kid's hand, he started following after Kaiba, determined to catch up.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped at you like that," he muttered, looking over at Seto who was clearly avoiding looking back, "I'm just... this is wearing on me."

"I just want to talk to my brother."

"I get that. We'll find him."

Hopefully. Kaiba had walked off quickly, and it was safe to assume Mokuba was following after him. They were always connected at the hip, but if Jonouchi wanted to talk to the younger Kaiba brother, Kaiba himself couldn't be around. There was no way he'd entertain the thought of Jonouchi talking to Mokuba, especially in a private conversation right after being publicly humiliated.

Still, the odds were that Seto wouldn't let it rest until they talked to Mokuba, and Jonouchi didn't have the heart to turn the kid down. He led the way, walking in the direction in which Kaiba had gone. Seto was gripping his shirt as if he was afraid of getting lost, although that was very unlikely to happen, seeing as they were in a wide-open space. Speaking of which, while Kaiba had stormed off pretty quickly, it was unlikely that they'd lose track of him entirely. The paths around the island were very clear, and he doubted the man planned on taking a detour.

Jonouchi had thought correctly. It wasn't long before Kaiba came into sight again. He'd stopped, and was glaring at Ishizu, who had for some reason decided to engage him in conversation. From the looks of things, Kaiba didn't like the topic. While Ishizu was very calm and collected (as per usual), Kaiba seemed about ready to tell her off. That may have been because he was all ready irate, though.

Whatever argument they were having was interrupted when Kaiba tried to leave, only to turn back when Mokuba didn't follow him.

"Nii-sama," Mokuba began, his tone desperate. Jonouchi hadn't heard Mokuba yell before, really, except when he was celebrating. Right now, though, he seemed to be on the verge. "I think Ishizu is right! And so is Yugi! Ever since you started this tournament, all you've thought about is revenge! It's making you crazy! You don't even sleep. I don't know what the deal is with this Marik guy or whether or not destiny is a real thing, but Yugi needs your help! You need to let it go and start being yourself again."

Mokuba paused for breath, gazing up at his stunned brother. When Kaiba didn't reply immediately, Mokuba spoke again, this time more quietly.

"I just want you to smile again," he finished, his voice breathy. Jonouchi felt bad for the poor kid. He stood by his brother on everything, but it seemed that he didn't always like what was being done. He was sure that Kaiba would simply ignore the outburst or possibly berate Mokuba, but instead, his posture changed. He looked less defensive, his eyes looking far less strained (and, frankly, insane) than they had since the beginning of the Battle City tournament.

"You're right," he murmured, looking so intently at his younger brother that they may as well have been alone, "I'm sorry, Mokuba. I'll try to make it right."

Jonouchi couldn't help but be surprised. He'd heard Kaiba apologize before after saying upsetting things, or just being a prick, but for him to so suddenly give up on a vendetta that had driven his every action for months simply because Mokuba wanted him to do so? That was unexpected, though he could hardly say he was disappointed. Knowing that someone held sway over Kaiba, even when he was sickeningly obsessed and more than a little crazy, gave a little more credence to the good points of his character.

Kaiba was looking toward the Alcatraz tower when Jonouchi and Seto came close enough to be noticed. Kaiba saw them, and his eyes briefly lingered on Seto.

"What are you trying to tell me?" He muttered, earning strange looks from both Mokuba and Ishizu, but he didn't seem to notice. Seto appeared surprised that he was being acknowledged, and he looked up at Jonouchi as if asking for help. Kaiba followed his gaze, staring Jonouchi in the face . His expression transitioned from mild disdain to what seemed like interest-and possibly confusion. Jonouchi had thought that maybe he'd be a little shocked about 'hallucinating', but he seemed to mostly be curious about the situation. Whatever. So long as he was in a receptive mood, it was probably as good a time as any to talk to Mokuba.

"Is this more of Yugi's occult bullshit? Because I'm sick and tired of seeing him hanging around you like a second shadow. What is going on?"

"What are you talking about?" Asked Jonouchi, stepping back as Kaiba stepped forward, looking a bit too intently at him for comfort.

"Him. Me. Hanging around you. What does he want?"

Kaiba's eyes were fixed on Seto now, and the younger version of himself became very intimidated, though not quite as fixed on hiding behind Jonouchi as he was before. His arms were crossed and his face was stern, as if he was trying to be defiant. It was like they were in a stare down. Mokuba didn't share in Kaiba's hallucinations, and Ishizu had long since left for the duel tower; as such, Jonouchi was the only person present who didn't look completely confused.

"Nii-sama, who are you talking to?"

"-Go wait for me at the tower. I'll talk to you about it later."

Mokuba looked hesitant to obey, probably because of the curt command and the fact that his brother was acting more erratic than usual, but Kaiba seemed to notice his discomfort. He turned his eyes on his brother, and for the first time Jonouchi had seen in a while, they were a little soft. Just a little.

"I'll talk to you about it later. I promise. Meet me at the tower."

Mokuba seemed relatively appeased, and after giving Kaiba a small smile and a nod, he dashed off to go watch the fateful duel between Marik and Atem.

"I wanted to talk to him," Seto mumbled to Jonouchi, "And I don't think he's going to come back anytime soon. What if I don't get another chance?"

"I'm sure you will, relax."

"Stop ignoring me," Kaiba commanded sharply, "I asked you a question. Why is he following you?"

"Because I'm just that great a guy," replied Jonouchi sarcastically, "If you seriously don't know why your own self is following me around, then you have a lot of issues to sort out."

"Don't get snarky with me. You can obviously see him. No one ever has before. What the hell is going on?"

Jonouchi felt something lurching, as if the island had become detached from the ocean floor for a split second, but it didn't last any longer than blinking. The sensation bothered him, but he chose not to investigate it for now. Kaiba was getting riled up, and if he didn't figure something out soon, then Kaiba's brain might finally get enough cognition to reject Jonouchi's presence. And then everything would go to hell.

"It's not really something I can explain," he shrugged, hoping that getting Kaiba to try to think of a solution in his unconscious state would calm the situation. He was still technically asleep, and despite being far too intelligent for his own good, his subconscious might still create a bullshit explanation to satisfy its own discomfort.

"If you don't explain it, how am I supposed to understand?"

Well, that wasn't good. Jonouchi felt vertigo again, and his mind raced for a solution as Seto clung to him. Maybe he could feel it, too.

"Look," he began, "A lot of things happen around here that we can't explain. You know that much. I'm sure that between the two of us, we can figure something out."

Kaiba tilted his head, looking thoughtful. It seemed that he may have finally succeeded in getting this part of his subconscious to try convincing itself that everything was normal. Kaiba hummed as he considered...whatever was going on in his thoughts, and Jonouchi felt less like he was about to be flung into a void.

"I don't understand," Kaiba muttered, as if he was only talking to himself, "Is he a projection? Is this like when I dueled Yugi...?"

Jonouchi had no idea what that meant, but they were on the right track. So long as Kaiba's mind didn't realize that he was invading (and fucking things up, for all intents and purposes), then they'd be all right.

"If you were paying any attention, you would have figured it out by now," came the voice of Seto, who was still close to Jonouchi's side, "When have I appeared to you? When you needed to hear something important. I've been trying for a while now to tell you something, and you've been ignoring me."

Kaiba seemed confused again, but this time, there wasn't a volatile response. Perhaps he was more inclined to believe himself than Jonouchi. He silently thanked the kid for having the idea to pipe up.

"Don't talk in riddles," Kaiba grumbled, "It's been a long day."

"If you'd prefer that I insult your intelligence, then fine," Seto sniffed, looking very much like his older self, "Have you ever stopped to wonder why you treat Jonouchi the way you do? You justify it with every awful reason you can invent, and never once have you actually tried changing your opinion of him."

"Why should I?" The older Kaiba asked, narrowing his eyes. "He's so far beneath me that it's almost disgusting to see you clinging to him like that. Pardon me, it is disgusting."

"Do you hear yourself?" Seto berated, "The duel he just fought with you was a challenge, wasn't it? He put up enough of a fight that you had to really work-and don't try to lie to me, because I know you."

Kaiba bristled at the accusation. Jonouchi remembered times in the past when he'd said much the same to the older, more mature Kaiba, who had admitted he was right (if reluctantly). He briefly wondered about the consequences of convincing his less mature self of that, but at the moment, it was the only idea he had.

"So he can duel well enough to keep fourth place! Why should that warrant my respect? He's still a low-class deadbeat, and I have no reason to waste time or courtesy on him."

Jonouchi wanted to argue, but he didn't have the chance. Seto let go of him entirely and actually glared at his older self with such intensity that he really did look like Jonouchi's Kaiba. The one with the fully-developed glare of doom.

"Are you listening to yourself?" He asked, his tone chilly. "Don't you know who you sound like?"

Kaiba froze as if he was petrified by the words, his eyes the only part of his body that seemed to be still alive. Jonouchi could see the wheels turning in his head, as if he was frantically seeking a solution. He worked his jaw, but said nothing, choosing instead to stare back at Seto's disapproving face.

"You probably didn't even try stopping yourself from becoming him, did you?"

"Shut up!" Kaiba hissed, his eyes wild with what Jonouchi recognized as deep hatred. "I'm not like him! I never will be!"

"Then why have you spent all this time on a campaign against someone who did nothing to you? Have you stopped to think at all, or were you too busy avoiding the fact that you're turning into the person you're trying to wipe from your memory?"

Jonouchi stiffened when everything went dark momentarily. And it wasn't because he blinked. Either Seto was really triggering Kaiba's subconscious, or he was doing something right. Whatever the case, he almost felt bad for the older Kaiba. Bully though he may have been, he still remembered his Kaiba, the one who lived daily with the guilt of who he'd been once upon a time. He'd always said that he'd become Gozaburo, after a point. Jonouchi had always reassured him that it wasn't true.

Seto seemed to think differently.

"You're never going to change, Kaiba Seto," the child accused, "Until you stop letting him guide your steps."

"What are you talking about?" Asked Kaiba, almost too unsure of himself to even want to know the answer. It was like he knew, but it wasn't something to be said out loud. "Gozaburo has no part in my life anymore, can't you see that? As soon as I blow up this tower, he'll be dead. Forever. No part of him will be on this earth, and his memory will be like dust in the wind."

"You really believe that?" Seto queried. "If it was simply his property that kept him in your thoughts, then you wouldn't need to destroy this island. You could brush it from your mind and move on. You are the reason you can't get rid of him. He left a stain on you that can't be removed unless you actually face yourself. This is your problem, and you have to take responsibility."

"I have already," replied Kaiba, narrowing his eyes threateningly, not that it did any good while arguing with himself, "I took over the company. I got rid of the Big Five and had them replaced. Everyone who was once affiliated with him is now fired. Hell, I blew up his weapon factories and had the designs for his inventions burned. There's nothing left of him. Not after I'm done with this place. I don't need you, some figment of my imagination, trying to tell me what is and isn't true. You're not even real."

They glared silently at one another, and it wasn't until that silence was almost palpable that Seto finally spoke again.

"You aren't even listening to me," he stated quietly, "You're a fool, Kaiba Seto. Blow it all up. See what good it does you. I can't change your mind."

Seto took Jonouchi's hand as Kaiba continued to seethe with defiance, and Jonouchi looked down at him. The kid simply met his gaze, his expression one of determination, and then everything went dark.


	3. Chapter 3

Jonouchi opened his eyes, and discovered that he was in a completely new place. He was staring at a steel ceiling that he recognized-it was the roof of one of Kaiba's helicopters. Jonouchi sat up, now aware that he'd been lying down on a flattened row of seats. Seto was sitting upright across from him, watching him carefully.

"Good morning to you too," Jonouchi grumbled, "How did you-"

He cut off when he heard people shouting outside, the rushing of water, and felt a salty wind blowing hard into the helicopter. He was groggy, and his limbs felt horribly stiff as he stood and stretched. This must be the point when he woke up, after Yugi saved his soul from the Doom Swordsmen and Dartz. That meant that Atlantis was probably rising out of the ocean at this very second.

"Come on, kid," he reached out a hand to Seto, who jumped from his seat and took it, "Let's go take a look at the end of the world."

"The world is ending?"

"Yeah, for a while. You-or, your older self helped stop it."

Seto stared at him, wide-eyed in awe, and eagerly followed him out of the helicopter door and onto the island upon which the Paradias headquarters rested. Anzu, Honda, Mokuba, and Kaiba were standing near the edge of the cliff, watching an enormous floating chunk of land rise from the sea. The city upon it was complex; it looked more like a maze than any city they'd seen on modern Earth. Jonouchi knew already that it was Atlantis.

"What is that?" Seto asked, sounding both amazed and a little frightened. He moved closer to Jonouchi.

"It's the lost city of Atlantis," Jonouchi explained, "It's a long story. I'll explain it to you later."

Before Seto could question him further, Jonouchi's friends noticed his presence as he joined them. Anzu gushed in relief at his recovery, and Honda nearly broke his damn neck with a crushing man-hug. Once he'd been released, Jonouchi looked at Kaiba, who was watching him with an almost statuesque gaze. The intensity in those eyes made him feel like his soul was being searched.

"Dartz sacrificed his own soul to summon the Leviathan," Kaiba explained, "I left with these guys, but Yugi stayed inside like the martyr he is. We have to go back for him."

It was like being debriefed.

Kaiba turned on his heel and walked toward the archway that was the entrance of the Paradias building so suddenly that it took Jonouchi a moment to react.

"Hey!" He called, tugging a little on Seto's hand so the boy would follow him. "Where do you think you're going without me?"

"Pfft. I don't need your help. You should get on the helicopter and go back to the mainland with the others."

He was concerned, and Jonouchi knew it. Years before, he would have taken that as an insult to his abilities, but he knew better now. Kaiba had difficulty with openly expressing compassion, something that Jonouchi had to learn over months of interaction.

"I'm as healthy as a horse, thank you," Jonouchi sniffed, following Kaiba down the darkened hallway that led to the entry chamber of the building, "And last time I checked, there were three Legendary Dragon cards needed to defeat Dartz."

Kaiba seemed as if he was about to make a rebuttal, but instead his gaze shifted to the still-stunned Seto. He narrowed his eyes only slightly at his bigger self, who only snorted in response.

"So he's still following you around," Kaiba noted, sounding more curious than angry, "What exactly is he trying to tell me this time?"

"Maybe I'm just good company," Jonouchi snorted, and Kaiba hummed, looking irritated. He didn't press the issue further, and they walked silently until they reached the central chamber. Jonouchi knew that it was only a short walk back to the enormous room where Yugi and Kaiba had fought Dartz, and that was their destination. Kaiba called for him to stop when he turned that way, though.

"Jonouchi, are you certain that you're ready for this?" He asked. It sounded like a challenge, but he was simply trying to mask his worry. "You were in a coma for two days and didn't use any of your bodily functions during. You just got up, and now you think you can run off and fight Dartz?"

"Oh, please," Jonouchi sighed, "I'm fine. Get off my back."

He turned away again, but Kaiba barked at him again.

"This isn't just another game, Jonouchi!"

Jonouchi looked back. That hadn't happened originally, but he hadn't made the same responses originally, either. Kaiba's posture was angry, but Jonouchi recognized the burning concern in his eyes. That expression had been turned on him in the past, after the two of them had enough time to grow up that Kaiba felt secure in expressing himself.

* * *

"I can manage well enough to get a glass of water myself, Kaiba," whined Jonouchi, medicated on Vicodin but still too irritated to not fuss at Kaiba, who was smothering him with his absurd attempts to play nurse, "I have two legs."

"Perhaps so, but you're still injured. If you want to heal properly, you need to take it easy and rest as much as you can."

"I'm fine. You just worry too much."

Grumbling, he turned onto his side and exhaled, turning his back toward the man he was now living with. Not that he really had much of a choice. The thugs who hung around his apartment had finally caught up with him, and after surviving the beat down of his life, he'd had no choice but to shack up in Kaiba's hotel room downtown, at least until he until he was well enough to find a new place.

"I don't worry too much," Kaiba rebuked, "You're being irrational. Any doctor would tell you the same thing. Why would you risk jeopardizing the healing process when I can easily do something as simple as getting a glass of water for you?"

"Because I'm not broken and I don't like being treated as such."

Although his ribs were bruised. And his face still felt sore from where he was punched in the cheek, and there were scrapes all over his back from when he was knocked to the ground. He was in pretty rough shape, and looked much as he did back in high school, only less scrawny. Now there was far more muscle on him, but being out of practice when it came to street fighting, it didn't do him much good. Jonouchi still managed to get out numbered one to six.

And Kaiba wasn't letting it go. He of course had found him in the alleyway, after getting a call from the bloodied Jonouchi sometime around midnight. His anxiety had gone into overdrive, and practically carrying the blond back into the car, he'd driven him down to the hotel to bandage him up. And hopefully convince him to stay.

"Broken? If you were broken, you'd be far easier to convince," Kaiba grumbled, "I'm not fool enough to think you need my help, Jonouchi. But I'd be useless to you if I didn't make things easier while you heal. You may not be broken, but you are bruised."

"Only in a few places. I'm fine... And maybe instead of arguing at me, you could actually get that glass. I'm going to die of thirst any second now."

He heard Kaiba snort in amusement. His steps sounded against the floor, and he left the bedroom momentarily to get a glass of ice water from the kitchen. When he returned, Jonouchi rolled carefully onto his back and sat up a little, taking the water. Kaiba sat at the edge of the bed beside him.

"I know you're fine," Kaiba stated, watching him affectionately. It made Jonouchi a little uncomfortable, nice as it was to see that level of compassion on Kaiba's face, "You're obviously fine, since you're as argumentative as ever. But I won't feel like I can rightly leave you to your resources until you're back to your usual perfect self."

"I'm hardly perfect you flirt," snorted Jonouchi, gulping down all the water before setting the glass on the bedside table, "And I look ugly as hell right now."

Turning back around, he glared out the huge windows that displayed the lights of the Domino nighttime cityscape, the skyline lit by the people who had yet to sleep, and the ocean sparkling vibrantly because of it. Even at night, the ships out at dock were visible, red port lights and starboard green still beaming through the darkness until the early morning hours.

"The Vicodin is obviously going to your head," Kaiba murmured, leaning over so he could rest his hand on Jonouchi's shoulder. He looked like he wanted to get closer, but it wasn't the wisest idea at this point, and he knew it. "You aren't ugly, Jonouchi. You never have been. Even my arrogant, classist ass had to admit that back in the day. If you think you can scare me off with a few bruises, then you're just insulting my level of attachment."

"I don't need a friendship speech, I just need sleep..."

Everything was hurting. It didn't matter how many blue pills of pain killers Jonouchi took, his body was sore and it was still bothering him. Not to the point where he wouldn't be able to fall asleep, but he knew he'd end up waking in pain at some point. And he'd have to get out of bed to medicate himself, since Kaiba was such a hard sleeper and probably wouldn't wake until morning.

He hadn't been getting nightmares since moving in with Jonouchi.

"Aren't you tired too?"

"Not quite," Kaiba replied, walking to the other side of the bed so he could sit up beside Jonouchi, "I think I'll sit up until I'm sleepy. Don't stay up for my sake."

Jonouchi wasn't aware of this, and wouldn't be until the wee hours of the morning, but Kaiba wasn't be going to sleep until after his injured friend inevitably woke in the middle of the night in desperate need of more painkillers.

"And for the record," the taller man continued, "I don't do friendship speeches."

"You do. You're just too damn proud to admit it."

Yawning, Jonouchi gave up on trying to stay awake. The medication was making him drowsy, and closing his eyes, he started drifting off right away. He didn't even care that Kaiba was looking down at him, a familiar look of concern and affection on his face, something Jonouchi was getting more and more used to. The months had been speeding by, and despite the very rocky start, things were very different from when they first met.

Like they were two different people.

But Jonouchi wasn't thinking too much about that. His breathing was slowing to the point where he was almost snoring, and there was no way he was going to remain conscious for very long. Not at the close of one of the roughest nights of his life, after getting the tar kicked out of him. Trying not to put pressure on his ribs, he leaned his back against Kaiba as he tried falling asleep.

"I'm not too proud," Jonouchi heard Kaiba murmuring as he stroked his hair, "You know I think of you as more than a friend."

Yes, Jonouchi did know that. He was still coming to terms with it, but he knew. He was already barely awake when Kaiba made his quiet remark, and as such, he didn't get awkward or make a rebuttal. He simply hummed noncommittally, letting the repetitive and soothing motion of Kaiba's fingers running through his hair lull him to sleep. In all honesty, it was a bad day that could have ended a whole lot worse than this. Jonouchi was still alive, and he was with his friend, safe and sound. Where he belonged.

* * *

Jonouchi was shaken from his memory by Seto tugging at his shirt, giving him a slightly cross look. Looking back down at the kid briefly, he gave him a small smile for reassurance before he returned his attention to the older one.

"Don't worry so much, Kaiba," he grinned, "I'm a little stiff, but I feel fine. I can handle this. I'm durable."

Kaiba didn't seem quite appeased, but he did hesitantly nod once before following Jonouchi to the enormous circular room that housed the souls of the ten thousand people Dartz had stolen. Kaiba muttered to himself in confusion when Yugi was waiting there in front of a portal to wherever, but he didn't hesitate when they caught up to the shorter man.

"Is this where Dartz went?" Kaiba asked, and Yugi nodded. From his mannerisms, Jonouchi could tell that it was actually 'other Yugi', but Kaiba didn't know about that yet.

"I don't know where this leads, but we have to enter it if we want to find him."

Yugi seemed as if he was about to say something else, but he ended up moving to the side when Kaiba brushed past him and stepped through the anomaly. Jonouchi smiled, giving Yugi a thumbs-up and a wink. His friend responded with a confident smile of his own before following Kaiba through.

"You ready, kid?" Jonouchi asked Seto, who was staring at the warped light before them.

"I'm not scared of anything," he huffed, "You should be asking yourself that."

Although his voice was faltering. Not wanting to be outshined by his older self, though, Seto grabbed Jonouchi's hand and pulled him through.

After the blinding light of the portal subsided, Jonouchi blinked his eyes open and saw that they were in a new memory. He was sitting beside Yugi and the others, with Seto on his left. They were in the Blue-Eyes White Dragon dueling stadium back in Kaiba Land US, seated in the front row that was reserved for the competing duelists. Before Jonouchi could really get his bearings enough to wonder what point in time this was, he heard the crowd roar and saw a fog gathering on the dueling field as a platform rose from it. The figure standing at the top was a young Mokuba, who was as usual acting as the tournament commissioner.

When the platform reached full height, the kid smiled and threw his fist into the air, obviously pleased with the attention. Honestly, both of those two were showoffs. Seto was gaping up at his brother, looking torn between pride and fear that Mokuba would fall to his death or something.

"Welcome, America!" Mokuba shouted into his microphone, his English very good despite the undoubtedly limited time he'd spent learning it. "Welcome to the Kaiba Corporation Grand Prix!"

The crowd in the stadium was tens of thousands strong, and the cheering and applause was enough to make a man deaf. Yugi and Anzu were, in fact, covering their ears, and Otogi was wincing. Rebecca seemed excited by the energy, but she was strange to begin with.

"This tournament will be fought by the greatest duelists from across the globe, all invited personally by Seto Kaiba himself!"

Seto looked up at Jonouchi quickly, and seemed to be asking a question, but he was inaudible over the audience. Likely, he was surprised that his older self had finally acknowledged Jonouchi's skill. In all honesty, Jonouchi hadn't been qualified for an elite tournament, but Kaiba had invited him anyway. When he really thought about it, he might have disappointed the guy when he lost his second duel to Sigfried, but considering that the German had cheated, he was sure Kaiba could give him some leeway.

Mokuba explained the rules and structure of the tournament to the crowd, but before he closed his announcement, all eyes turned to the sky. Jonouchi groaned a little, remembering the event clearly. When he did look up, Kaiba's Blue-Eyes White Dragon jet was hovering over the stadium, and the man himself soon appeared at one of the side exits. People in the audience started shouting frantically when he leapt out, but Jonouchi already knew that he'd made some kind of device that allowed him to slow his landing. Leave it to Kaiba Seto to invent jet packs for something completely irrelevant.

"Listen closely!" Kaiba announced with authority to the audience. He had one hand on the microphone and one extended into the air to get everyone's attention. As if they could ignore the man in the white suit dropping out of the sky. "I have a message for the contestants! You may think that you're simply engaging in a game, and if you do, then it's time to think differently. When you step onto the field of battle in the professional league, you are not playing a game! This isn't play-it's life or death! So fight your hardest, or die well!"

Evidently, this made the crowd even more excited, because they cheered and applauded wholeheartedly. Kaiba stood with his microphone and threw his fist into the air for a few seconds before descending the stairs behind the platform with Mokuba and going on his way. He was apparently too busy to talk to the contestants, but had time to make an appearance.

Mokuba ran to Jonouchi immediately, looking excited.

"You're still here, good," he stated breathlessly, "Your duel is first. You have to head out to the 'Aztec Jungle' arena."

Jonouchi nodded, standing. He took Seto's hand to ensure the kid wouldn't simply stay in the stadium examining everything around him. It was probably a lot to take in, especially since his older self created everything here.

He left the large room and entered one of the hallways that led outside. It was relieving, how much quieter it was in the dark tunnel.

"Where are we, exactly?" Asked Seto quietly. Jonouchi laughed a little.

"This is Kaiba Land. You and Mokuba build theme parks once you get older."

He'd expected Seto to be excited and start possibly jumping around, but instead he gaped at Jonouchi, a slow smile spreading across his face. Well, more than a smile. It was a grin. The kid was swelling with pride. He turned his head to face forward, straightening his back and walking with such a near-strut that Jonouchi was reminded of the adult Kaiba after a really good night...

Jonouchi didn't ask the kid what put him in such a good mood, figuring it must be something private since he didn't mention it. They'd reached the doors that would lead them outside, and squinting to guard his eyes from the bright sunlight, Jonouchi pushed it open.

When he opened his eyes completely, though, the light was no longer from the sun outside. There wasn't any sun at all, actually. He felt Seto clinging to his side as wind whipped around them, the sounds of a battle echoing over the barren desert sands. The sky was dark, the sun blotted out completely. Jonouchi hadn't really wanted to relive the experience of Zorc attacking Egypt anytime soon, but there was no conceivable way out of it.

He discovered that his hand was in the air, wrapped around a silver dog tag, along with the hands of his closest friends-Honda, Anzu, Yugi, and the Pharaoh who would shortly discover his true name. They were working to remember the symbols they'd seen back in the modern world that spelled his lost name, a pure-white light surrounding them as they did so. Jonouchi focused with the others, using his free hand to hold on to Seto as some kind of reassurance; his eyes snapped open when he heard Zorc release a guttural shout, and he saw a blast of dark energy flying toward them. There wasn't enough time to move, and with that in mind, Jonouchi forgot he was supposed to be remembering Atem's name and knelt to pull Seto closer to him instead. Logically, his body wouldn't be enough to shield the kid from whatever attack Zorc might have made, but he wasn't going to stand idly by. It wasn't in his nature, and despite knowing too in the back of his mind that he wasn't going to be hit, Jonouchi couldn't stop his first impulse to protect Seto from being attacked.

They were never struck, though. He could barely see beyond the light around him, but Kaiba was standing some ten feet in front of them. He'd activated some kind of spell that prevented the attack. Jonouchi was surprised that he'd succeeded. He'd seen the Pharaoh's seven priests (the greatest duelists in Egypt) have their spells blown away by Zorc. That Kaiba had managed to stop one of his attacks was remarkable.

He seemed to be struggling though, the spell drawn from his own energy; rather than letting go and having the attack hit everyone, however, he caused some type of blast, one which negated the attack but still sent him flying back by a good forty feet. Whatever happened after that suddenly lost relevance. Jonouchi stood immediately, dashing as quickly as he could to the place where Kaiba had landed. He couldn't possibly have taken a hit like that without sustaining some kind of injury. Jonouchi heard the sound of another's footsteps behind him, as well as panting, and vaguely realized that Seto was running after him.

When he reached Kaiba's side, the man was still unconscious. His hands and face had been scraped a little from dragging through the rough sand, but he didn't look like he'd broken anything.

"Kaiba?" He called, disregarding the light that was shining behind him with the return of the sun. "Can you hear me?"

Seto was silent, and simply watched his older, unconscious self, his lips parted as he breathed heavily. Jonouchi rested a hand on Kaiba's shoulder and shook him a little, trying to rouse him.

"Kaiba?" He called a second time, now shaking him a little harder. The image of him unconscious back in the real world made him more frantic than he perhaps should have been, but he couldn't help himself.

"Kaiba, come on. Wake up!"

There was still no response. Jonouchi lifted Kaiba's upper body into his lap and held his head up with one hand. Brushing his hair back, he started forgetting just where he was, the image of the man lying in bed becoming confused with the dream world. It was like times blurring together, and losing himself in the situation, he came close to breaking down in tears.

"Seto, you can't just leave me here all alone! Wake up! You can't go like this without me."

He watched Kaiba's face for any signs of a response, and for a few seconds, he was sure the man wouldn't wake up again. Then his eyes moved behind the lids, and he grimaced a little, grumbling, before he slowly opened his eyes.

"What-"

Kaiba's eyes widened when he saw Jonouchi, his expression transitioning from confusion to shock, and then to what might have been anger. He lifted one hand and used it to push Jonouchi's chest as if to shove him away. But he was too weak for that to do much good.

"Get off of me! What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Jonouchi was stunned for a second before responding. He really had completely forgotten what he was actually doing. Of course Kaiba would react this way-they weren't even friends at this point in time.

"Calm down," Jonouchi replied, moving and helping Kaiba stand with him anyway, "What, I can't be worried about you dying on me?"

"There was absolutely no reason for you to make that much physical contact with me," Kaiba snapped, more irritable than usual. Perhaps it was due to the fact that he was dirty, tired, and hurting, or maybe he was just that upset about Jonouchi touching him. The latter was a little hurtful, in all honesty, but Jonouchi reminded himself that they had hardly been close when this had happened... And Kaiba had been in denial over a lot of things still...

Jonouchi chose not to respond to him, taking Seto's hand instead and leading him back to where the others stood. He heard Kaiba intake a sharp breath, likely due to seeing Seto following Jonouchi around yet again. They made it a few paces before Kaiba spoke.

"Jonouchi!" He called, and when he stopped and turned to look at him, Kaiba's eyes were still on Seto.

"What?" Jonouchi responded a little impatiently. He was a bit upset about the whole ordeal, really, and wanted to get out of this memory as soon as possible. To his surprise, Kaiba looked him in the eyes briefly, then averted his gaze, crossing his arms tightly as Jonouchi had seen him do in later years when he felt vulnerable or uncomfortable.

"...Thank you," Kaiba muttered, "I owe you one."

Jonouchi blinked at him, staring a bit rudely in disbelief, but Kaiba continued staring off at...whatever he was staring at. He certainly wasn't looking at Jonouchi.

"Don't worry about it, Kaiba," Jonouchi grinned, "I'm just returning the favor."

Kaiba gave him a strange look, but said nothing. Jonouchi turned around, expecting to return to his friends, but instead, he saw a small playground. It was obviously lunchtime, or after classes, because there were children running around, kicking balls and chasing each other or just crouching and pulling out grass. Jonouchi was confused as to where they were, and he looked down at Seto for answers. The boy was staring at the playground, or perhaps the squat building behind it.

"You okay?" Jonouchi queried, squeezing Seto's hand to get his attention.

"-I just don't like this place. Why are we here?"

"How would I know? Where are we, exactly?"

Seto turned to face him, his eyes wide and shimmering in the light. Jonouchi felt a pang of pity for the kid, seeing as he was obviously upset and not hiding it as well as he'd learned to do when he grew older.

"This is the orphanage," Seto murmured, "This is where Mokuba and I were left."

Jonouchi blinked, unsure of what to say. If he knew anything about Kaiba, it was that he never wanted anyone's pity. Still, he felt like he should do something to console Seto. He wasn't sure just what. He soon had an idea, fortunately, and gave Seto an encouraging pat on the shoulder.

"Well, do you think Mokuba's here? You've been dying to talk to him, and this might be one of your memories. Should we find him?"

"-Yeah, we should. He's only five after all, and people like to mess with him too much. The adults here don't really keep an eye on him, so I have to do it myself," Seto sighed, "Otherwise, someone will try bullying him again."

Jonouchi let Seto lead the way around the playground, eventually stopping at a small sandbox. Jonouchi couldn't help but smile at the sight of a tiny Mokuba, his little hands digging through the sand diligently. When Seto stepped into the box to join him, he looked up, his face immediately brightening.

"Nii-sama!" Mokuba shouted so loudly that Jonouchi winced a little. The kid had no volume control.

"Hey," Seto greeted, his eyes gentle as he offered his brother a small smile. He knelt in the sandbox, and Jonouchi was duly amused as he recalled how much grown-up Kaiba hated having dirt on his clothing or body. Or hair, especially.

"Let's build sand castles!" Mokuba suggested enthusiastically, his dark eyes shining with anticipation. He seemed to have taken a cue from his older brother's quieter speaking and lowered his volume.

"Of course," Seto nodded, "How else are we going to plan the theme park?"

Jonouchi crouched beside the sandbox, laughing heartily. He resolved that, no matter what happened when he got back to the real world, he would ensure that he teased Kaiba about this. He knew that the man had probably intended that no one ever find out he was cute once upon a time. Hell, come to think of it, everyone who knew about it was either dead or missing.

"What are you guys building, exactly? You said a theme park?" Jonouchi asked Seto, since Mokuba apparently couldn't see him. Seto glanced at him briefly as if annoyed, but answered anyway.

"We're planning the theme park we're going to build when we grow up," he replied, "It'll be a place like Disney Land, but where kids can get in even if they don't have much money. We're going to build them all over the world!"

It seemed he'd always had a bit of a dramatic flare, but Jonouchi got the point. He hadn't actually known that Kaiba had wanted to build his park for so long. A childhood dream? Really? He'd found out over time that Kaiba was far more sentimental than he'd ever let on, but for him to have really held on to something like that...it took Jonouchi by surprise. He watched the two children work for a few moments before speaking again.

"Is that why you were so happy at Kaiba Land?"

"We finally got what we always dreamed about, didn't we?"

But before Jonouchi could answer, the entire scene changed and everyone around them disappeared until they were standing back at the stadium in Kaiba Land-the one with the messed-up lights and the chilling voice on the intercom. And they weren't alone. Seto jumped up from the ground when he saw a figure approaching them, and grabbed Jounouchi's hand as a man appeared from the shadows, laughter filling the room. When he spoke, he was smiling, but the expression didn't reach his eyes; he looked more like an animal baring its teeth.

It was Kaiba.


	4. Chapter 4

Except, not really. He was shorter, his eyes a wolfish amber and his hair neon green. Jonouchi was shocked by his appearance. His intense gaze was like what the familiar Kaiba had, but his eyes were barren and unpredictable. His skin was even paler than the real Kaiba's, as if he not only worked mostly inside but actively avoided sunlight-and sleep.

"I'm so glad you two could join me for the final duel," he gushed mockingly, his mouth lifting even further at the corners, "You can't imagine how fun it's been, watching you wander around so cluelessly, Jonouchi."

"Who the hell are you?" Jonouchi growled, no longer afraid of the stranger since he could see him in person. Seto, on the other hand, was hiding behind him, gripping him as if for dear life and trembling.

"Jonouchi, I'm so hurt. You've forgotten about me already? I thought you'd remember me better. After all, we had some good times together, didn't we, lover?"

"-What are you talking about?" He was alluding to something, but Jonouchi couldn't exactly make sense of it. This Kaiba was someone he'd never seen before. And he was talking like they had been- intimate with each other. Looking disgusted, Jonouchi pointed his finger at him, losing his cool.

"How about you just tell me who you are instead of saying all this bullshit?"

The stranger laughed, his eyes wide and his lips curling. Jonouchi watched him warily; he looked like some animal losing its mind until he finally collected

"Come now, dearest," the Kaiba look-alike took a step closer, and another, "You really don't recognize me? I'm the one who's been sharing your bed for months. I've been your 'friend', your lover-"

He had closed the distance between them relatively quickly, leaving only a few feet of distance.

"-Your rapist."

* * *

Although Jonouchi was quite sure he'd had enough. He wasn't going to be treated like some play thing anymore, and growing tired of being overpowered like some girl, the blond only glanced at Kaiba before exhaling deeply in resignation, eyes firmly locked on the door beyond.

Snorting when Jonouchi finally fell limp and glanced away, Kaiba bent his head and kissed him forcefully. Jonouchi made it obvious that he wasn't reciprocating, but that wasn't exactly important at the moment.

"Finally giving in?" He purred, his tone mocking. Jonouchi still didn't look at him, but his eyes narrowed a little. "I'm not surprised. With all your accusations about my treating you like property, I assumed that you were asking for me to oblige."

Rather than wait for a response, he attacked Jonouchi's mouth again, tightening his grip when he felt the other man's muscles tensing. He couldn't get him to part his lips, and instead bit the bottom one aggressively. When he pulled away, Jonouchi simply made a disgusted expression and turned his head away again. He felt disdain at this response, but was distracted when he heard laughter, only realizing after it ended that it had been his own.

"Are you still being stubborn? What exactly do you think that will achieve?"

"Maybe you getting off sometime soon. I don't want you. Can't you see that? Stop it already, I really don't want you messing with me right now. When did you become like this?"

He couldn't believe Kaiba was actually trying to force himself on him. Like kissing him was going to get him to change his mind, and licking his bottom lip, he realized just how hard his partner had bit him. Something was wrong with him. Jonouchi finally decided to look at his face, and becoming immediately disturbed by the man's blue eyes, he pressed his entire body closer to the mattress instinctively to get away from him.

"Messing with you? Do I look like I'm playing, Jonouchi?"

Kaiba felt very odd when Jonouchi looked him in the eye, his hazel orbs immediately widening as if he was anticipating danger. Rightly so, perhaps. He wasn't sure exactly what he was doing, and while he was inclined to stop, he didn't seem able. Jonouchi wasn't reacting well to the treatment he was getting, but it seemed to be of little consequence.

"You're so easy to read, Jonouchi. You're like a children's book."

Jonouchi was so stunned by Kaiba's behavior (or perhaps his dangerous tone) that he managed to take him by surprise and flip him over. With Jonouchi forced onto his stomach, Kaiba was in an extreme position of power over him. He couldn't escape before, but now it would be almost impossible for him to even try.

"If you really think I treat you like property, then I can't wait to find out what you'll think later this evening."

"What the hell are you doing?" Asked Jonouchi, his voice rising in fear as he tried turning around enough to see Kaiba, "You can't be fucking serious?"

There was no way on earth he could possibly be thinking about having sex when Jonouchi clearly wasn't receptive to the idea. It seemed absolutely impossible to him, that someone like Kaiba would do anything like that, especially to him. Didn't he confess to love him? That he wanted to take care of him, and now what was he doing? Trying to force Jonouchi's clothes off as he struggled to push him away, feeling more and more out of control as he saw what was going to happen.

Jonouchi fortunately wasn't putting up so much of a struggle that Kaiba couldn't spare one hand to pull his pants and underwear down his hips, exposing his ass enough that he'd be able to carry on unimpeded. He had no real reason to draw out the event any longer than necessary, so while he used his body to keep Jonouchi pinned down, he managed to reach the bedside table drawer where he knew the lubricant was stored. Stopping to use it was a pain, but it wouldn't be to his benefit to break Jonouchi entirely.

"Don't be difficult," he chided as Jonouchi tried to remove him by turning over, "Just be still. I own you, remember?"

"Do this, and I'll never talk to you again. I promise you."

"You don't need to talk to be of use. I recall telling you in the past that you're more enjoyable with your mouth shut."

Kaiba tossed the lube bottle away and held Jonouchi down again with his dry hand, using the other to hold the base of his erection while he pressed it against Jonouchi's entrance. It was a tight fit, but he managed. He was able to get the head inside without too much difficulty, but the further he pushed, the more Jonouchi's shocked rectal muscles resisted. He simply drove harder, and used both his hands to pin his struggling partner as he did so.

It had hurt so bad, Jonouchi couldn't stop himself from crying out when Kaiba pushed further, his insides erupting into sharp jolts of pain while getting filled up. His muscles refused to relax, and becoming incredibly anxious while being penetrated, it took everything in him not to scream when the man got completely inside of him, the lubricant clearly not enough for the task. Everything was hurting, and feeling like he had been stabbed in the back for the second time in his short life, Jonouchi made himself bite his lip, not wanting to give Kaiba the satisfaction of hearing him cry out in pain.

Kaiba shuddered a little at the sound of more sick laughter, knowing it was his own voice despite the fact that he hadn't consciously made the noise. He must have been having a very strange dream, seeing as he was disoriented. Perhaps a lucid dream, but certainly he couldn't be conscious. He heard, saw, and felt as if it was real life, but his control was gone. He couldn't even close his eyes to push the images out of his mind.

"You're very quiet suddenly, Jonouchi," he mocked cruelly, seeing the other man's muscles tense and knowing full well that he must be in pain. He didn't care. He did care, but something prevented that from registering. It didn't take very long before he reached his climax. He didn't bother edging to avoid his body's initial reaction, which was to immediately achieve orgasm. And he did, after a few short minutes of thrusting in and out of Jonouchi's body. It wasn't an easy task, since the lubricant had been less than it should have, and Jonouchi hadn't had time to relax into the penetration, but he'd still managed, his voice rising as he grunted with effort.

* * *

"Walk any closer to me, you sick freak, and I'll rip your head from your shoulders with my own bare hands. I can do it, you know I can," threatened Jonouchi, pulling Seto back, "I'll fucking kill you for that."

The green-haired man laughed at Jonouchi's expense, taking another step forward.

"You'll kill me? We're in my mind, Jonouchi. I'm the only one with any power here. You, on the other hand, are far more vulnerable."

He started to pace, making a slow arc around Jonouchi as if looking for weak points. Jonouchi turned along with him, ensuring that Seto stayed behind him.

"You amuse me, Jonouchi," he continued almost thoughtfully, "You tried so very hard. Did you really believe that I was in love with you? That you were worth more than cheap entertainment?"

"You aren't him. Don't stand there and act like you're the same person as him..." he warned.

"Oh? And what makes you think I'm not? Tell me, did you ever find Kaiba? 'Your' Kaiba? It seems not. You're so stupid that it almost makes me pity you. Do you not remember all the times I told you I didn't think I'd changed at all? And you always reassured me so sincerely. You believed I had. It's absolutely comical."

"You're not him," Jonouchi insisted, "You don't even look like him, let alone could be the same person. I've seen enough to know that some people aren't completely whole."

"Ha! You think I'm some schizophrenic with a 'good' and 'bad' side? This isn't one of Yugi's self-righteous battles, Jonouchi. This is who I am. A person can only pretend for so long, wouldn't you say?

"... I changed. And clearly you weren't always like this," remarked Jonouchi, grabbing Seto's hand, "I've seen that."

The Kaiba impersonator before him chuckled, gritting his teeth and stopping in his tracks momentarily. Jonouchi couldn't shake the feeling that he was being hunted.

"I used to be weak, I admit," he mused, continuing his circle, "But I had the good fortune to have a stronger individual take me under his wing."

"Who are you talking about?"

It seemed like something Jonouchi should have known about, but between the fear he was trying to hide and the squirming Seto was doing behind him, he couldn't think straight. His body was running on adrenaline, and everything told him to just run and escape, but he couldn't.

"You don't know?" Kaiba's look-alike purred, wearing a patronizing expression. "After all the times you listened to my sob stories, I should think you would remember. Ah, well. My father, of course, was the most influential figure in my life. He was the ultimate example of power, and when I killed him-"

He suddenly stopped in his tracks and faced Jonouchi head-on, his predatory smile still on his face.

"-It's cute how you tried to convince me otherwise. Don't you understand? The reason I was victorious-the reason I'm powerful, it's because I destroyed the man on top. That's how nature works."

"... That's great, but what do you want with me? Because I have better things to do here than listen to you stroke your own ego. I am going to find Kaiba. The real one."

Jonouchi glared at the man in front of him, who had begun laughing at him as if he might at a child that had said something so ignorant as to be cute.

"Who do you see before you now?" He asked, spreading his arms in a gesture of presentation. "I am the 'real' Kaiba."

"No, you're just a sick fuck with a bad haircut, cabbage head."

It was a small victory to see the impersonator's eye twitch at the 'nickname'.

"Your insolent behavior is a poor disguise for your fear, Jonouchi," he hissed, before regaining his composure and donning his previous empty-hearted smile, "Is it so hard for you to believe? You've never once doubted that I'd 'reformed'? Didn't it ever occur to you that I was simply very good at pretending? I miss nothing. I've been privy to your thoughts before and after you invaded my mind, Jonouchi. I know you've been having doubts."

"Everyone has second thoughts," he answered, feeling a bit beaten, "And doubts, but that doesn't matter. I'm getting him back. And if you try getting in my way any more than you have now, so help me god, I will find a way to kill you."

'Cabbage Head' laughed heartily at this threat, seeming far less intimidated than Jonouchi would have liked.

"Oh, I can't help but doubt that, dearest," he purred, his lips curving upward in a cruel smile, "I almost pity you. It's like watching a very stupid dog chase its tail futilely. You have no idea how close to 'your' Kaiba you've been. This entire time, too. You never even got a hint, not once. With how badly you want your great pretender back, it comes as quite a shock to me that you can't recognize him.

Then again, he is as fake as they come. You don't even recognize who he really is-you can't even recognize me, and that doesn't force you to realize how well he lies, then you're either very naive, or more stupid than I originally thought.

But I should thank you, because I wouldn't have found him if it weren't for your help," the man added, "He's been so cowardly, fighting to keep me from finding him., I almost thought I'd never figure out just where he was hiding. But he seems to like attaching himself to a particular type, you could say, and that made him easy to find."

"What are you rambling about," snapped Jonouchi, "I'm starting to think you just enjoy hearing your own voice out loud."

"Ah, but wouldn't you, after years of forced silence?" The man asked pointedly. "And if you must know, I find it a valuable source of entertainment-making you squirm, I mean. You're so easy to use. It's almost as if you enjoy it. Tell me, Jonouchi. You did enjoy our last encounter, did you not? I tried to be gentle with you."

"What is he talking about?" Asked Seto finally, looking all sorts of disturbed. His curiosity (and perhaps concern) had overridden his fear, evidently.

Jonouchi didn't answer him. Instead he pushed him back further behind him, trying not to make Seto obvious, since the other "Kaiba" wasn't really paying him much attention. And that was how he wanted to keep it.

"You said there was a duel happening right now, right cabbage head? I'm sick of hearing your crap. We duel right now, and if I win, you better tell me where Kaiba is. No more of this bullshit mind game crap."

The other man raised an eyebrow, and Jonouchi already knew he was going to get his chance. He'd heard Kaiba's mantra a million times-never turn down a challenge. And especially when Duel Monsters was involved. His competition hummed, looking Jonouchi up and down as if he'd been challenged to a fistfight rather than a card game.

"Interesting," he spoke at last, "Perhaps I was right. You do enjoy having others beat you around, I suppose. You must, to have chosen to fight me on a battlefield I have mastered. If you think you'll enjoy having me rough you up a second time, Jonouchi, then you can have your duel. But it's by my rules."

"Name them."

"My, aren't you eager?" The look-a-like mulled it over in his head, flashing his eyes at Jonouchi before setting upon something in his head. "I have a wonderful idea, in fact. Something I learned from a friend of yours some time back. He was very enthusiastic about this sort of thing. He called them "shadow games". It does make the terms a bit more interesting, wouldn't you say, dearest?"

"If that's what I have to do to get Kaiba back, then fine."

"Excellent. Because every time you lose a monster, you'll forget a piece of him, and by the time I'm done with you, you'll remember nothing about that impostor. You'll just be here with me, forever. Sounds good, doesn't it? I have a lot of games to play in this head of mine, and I've never had a partner to share it with."

"Fine, but if you lose a monster, you forget about your 'hero', Gozaburo. And I know how you feel about your daddy issues. I win, I get Kaiba back, and we both wake up you fucked-up freak."

"You won't win, dearest. Not against me... I hope you enjoy penalty games."

They took their positions at opposite ends of the massive dueling field. The lights were low, not glaringly bright as they had been in the lobby before. Jonouchi was pleased to find that his deck was waiting for him. Likely, Kaiba knew his deck by heart, just as well as he did; at least, he hoped so. He didn't want any surprises.

'Cabbage head' drew first, without a coin flip of course, and Jonouchi focused hard on the game after the first monster was drawn. Seto cheered him on from the sidelines, always either encouraging him or sitting nervously in the stadium seating. At first, Jonouchi had the major advantage. He was more skilled than a younger Kaiba from the early days of the game, and he put more focus into the first crucial moves. After he'd repeatedly cleared the other man's field of monsters and had lucky flips and dice rolls, though, it seemed his opponent finally started to take him seriously.

That was the point when things went sour. It was slow, at first, because Jonouchi had prepared for possible attacks. He had cards like De-Spell, Magic Arm-Shield, and numerous equip cards and sacrificial summons to keep his side of the field beefy enough to withstand attacks. He lost monsters slowly, replacing them at a rate that was lower than that at which they were destroyed. He was holding out well enough until his opponent managed to pull a turn strategically using attacks, special summon, and counter-traps to clear his field. Jonouchi took a massive blow to both his life points and his memories. By the time his field had been cleared at last, and his life points were more than half-gone, he could barely recall who his opponent was and where they were.

* * *

The friction actually hurt on Kaiba's end, too.

He collapsed on top of Jonouchi when he finished, closing his eyes and feeling extremely sick and dizzy. Then he felt like he must have awakened, because his brain stopped finding a lack of correlation between what his senses detected and what he registered. He had let go of Jonouchi's wrists unknowingly and clutched the sheets to ensure he had control, and concluding that he did, he opened his eyes to see where it was he'd blacked out.

He was hardly pleased to see that he was in the same place where the 'dream' had ended, and panicked, he inhaled sharply at the sight of Jonouchi lying face-down beneath him hiding his face; he pulled out as carefully as he could, but he still heard the other man catch his breath when he did. What the fuck had he just done? That couldn't possibly have happened! He would never have...

"Jonouchi?" Kaiba called quietly, covering his mouth with one trembling hand. He couldn't have done that. He absolutely couldn't have. He'd never, ever do something like that without Jonouchi's consent. Not ever.

"-Don't talk to me."

Jonouchi's voice felt broken, and too beaten up to think about moving, he just pulled his hair when he felt his hands released, tears falling down his face. He hadn't even realized until then that he was crying, all the sensations in his body making him feel sick, and the only thing he could think clearly about at that point was jumping into the shower and washing off the cum that got dumped inside of him before he ended up throwing up all over the bed.

Not that it would be possible. His legs were shaking, and sore all over, there was no way he'd reach the bathroom without falling over and hitting himself against something. He felt like shit, and wiping his face and sniffing a little, he hoped that Kaiba couldn't hear him. That maybe he was so stuck in his own private afterglow that he'd just leave him alone finally.

Kaiba stared silently at Jonouchi for a few seconds, unable to speak for the fact that he was overwhelmed, coming to the realization that the images in his memory from just minutes ago was from something he'd actually done. Jonouchi wasn't moving, except for occasionally shuddering and pulling at his hair.

What could he say, at this point, that would be nearly sufficient? Nothing.

"-Katsuya," he called, since neither of them was moving anytime soon, "I'm sorry..."

He tried to get him to roll over by tugging on his shoulder, to no avail. He didn't even get his hand swatted away, as Jonouchi might have done normally when he was upset. He simply lay on the bed, unmoving.

"Please talk to me," he continued, "I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me. Katsuya?"

"-I hate you."

"I know. You have every right. I don't know what to say."

"Just... why did you do that? You say you love me, and then you just... you raped me. Just get the fuck out."

"I don't know why. I can't explain..."

Kaiba helplessly stared at the back of Jonouchi's head, knowing that there wasn't anything he could do at this point to remedy the situation. Especially while he himself was completely disturbed, and feeling very sick. He worked down the urge to vomit, figuring that throwing up all over Jonouchi wouldn't help the situation much.

"I'm sorry," he apologized again, "Is there anything I can do...?"

"-Just get the fuck away from me."

Finally gaining some strength, Jonouchi pulled away to the edge of the bed to cry, feeling much too angry to even think about what was coming out of his mouth. He felt so betrayed, and after trying so hard to get better and try making their relationship work, he promised himself he wouldn't try again. Not after being used like that, and it wasn't even the pain that made it terrible. If it had just been rough sex, he could have overlooked it, but the fact that Kaiba had done it deliberately to hurt him, going against his wishes and then mocking his pain...

"If you were sorry, you wouldn't have done it in the first place."

What could he say? Jonouchi might be right. The things he'd just said and done were against everything he'd told Jonouchi in the past. It was as if his own nagging doubts and fears about himself had become reality all at once, which was a terrifying thought. He'd been back in a place he thought he'd escaped after his the mind crush. He knew he still had that same dark personality lurking in the corners of his mind, however much Jonouchi might have tried to reassure him about it. Normally, he could keep it at bay.

How had he lost control? What if it happened again?

He let Jonouchi go, realizing that words weren't going to help at all, and he sat at the edge of the bed, staring at the wall. He was still in a state of shock over the whole situation. He knew he was going to throw up at some point tonight, because his rising nausea was reaching the point that his mouth was practically oozing salt water in preparation for the acid reflux.

Kaiba rested his head in his hands, shaking, blinking back water that was gathering in the corners of his eyes. Terror was rising in his chest. The idea that he was capable of doing something like that to Jonouchi of all people-whether in his right mind or not-was something he wasn't sure he could live with. He'd just raped the person he loved. Not only that, he'd done it while attacking him emotionally.

He couldn't hold back his bile anymore. Jonouchi was in the attached bathroom now, and Kaiba had to run out of the room and down the hall to vomit. He hadn't even eaten very much that day, but he continued to retch until even the dregs at the bottom of his stomach had been expelled. Afterward, he was so shaky and light-headed that he had to lean against the wall heavily to make it back to bed, where he collapsed and lay face-down. He vaguely registered the sound of the shower running, and hoped that Jonouchi at least felt a little better after being under the hot water. It seemed highly unlikely, though.

What was happening to him? He'd had urges before, nagging thoughts in the back of his mind worming into his consciousness. Telling him that Jonouchi was right, that he was trying to be his owner instead of his lover. Telling him that he hadn't changed, and was only making an effort to fool everyone into false security. Telling him that he was a murderer, among other crimes. It was probably true. Now he was a rapist, too.

He heard the shower stop, but couldn't move. He wanted to run into the bathroom and hold on to Jonouchi as tightly as he could, and beg him for forgiveness and a whole hell of a lot of help. But what would that achieve? Jonouchi didn't want him around, period. Besides, Kaiba would just look even crazier than he already was.

Leaving the bathroom, Jonouchi quickly stumbled into the closet and changed into boxers and a t-shirt, not even looking Kaiba's direction when he got back into bed. Avoiding the spot where he'd been pinned down, he had his back to the other man while yelling at himself to stop crying, having done most of it in the privacy of the shower. His eyes stung from it all, and only staying the night because he had no other place to go, he thought about going back to the old apartment.

Why not? Wasn't Kaiba scared because he thought he'd get gang raped? Already happened, the irony. And if he died, so what? No one could possibly care, and then his nightmare would be over.

"I hope it was worth it, Kaiba. Whatever you got from it. I'm leaving tomorrow morning, and hopefully that'll be the last I'll ever see of you. Goodnight."

Kaiba didn't speak. What could he say, except that he was sorry again? His first thought was that it was probably better that Jonouchi get the hell away from him. Until he had an explanation for what he'd done that night. While reasons were hardly excuses, at least maybe he'd know how to stop it from happening again. But by then, it was more than likely that it would be too late to get Jonouchi back. Kaiba rolled over with some effort so he could face Jonouchi's back. He wasn't sleeping yet.

"I don't know what happened to me," he began, thinking it was probably futile to try talking, but it was his only option at this point. "It was like I didn't have control over anything. I heard my own voice, saying things I didn't even think..."

He moved slowly closer to Jonouchi. The other man was still shuddering occasionally, and that probably meant he was still crying.

"I don't know what to do, Jonouchi. I can't explain what happened, and it's scaring the hell out of me. I didn't want to do that to you. I would never have entertained the thought."

He sat up, looking down at Jonouchi's face. He had his eyes closed, his lips pressed into a thin line as water collected at the corners of his eyes and ran over his cheeks. Kaiba wiped the drops away with his thumb carefully. Almost as if it was a reflex, Jonouchi sniffled and turned his head away further.

"I'm sorry. I can't say it enough, and I know I can't make up for it. I don't know what to do, Katsuya. I think I've been wrong for a long time, thinking I'd changed."

"I don't understand. How could you just do something like that and not remember? Like it wasn't actually happening to you? Because it was you, who did all of that, and no amount of apologizing will make it better. It hurt... You have no idea how badly it hurt."

And becoming upset again, Jonouchi grabbed a pillow and covered his face with it. It took a good hour for his crying to finally die down, and falling asleep on one side of the bed, Jonouchi dreamed as his body ached. Everything was hurting and it wouldn't be a surprise in the morning when his rectum burned from being beaten so hard. He'd need pain killers, and once he'd recovered, he would probably disappear to Yugi's bedroom until he could figure out what to do.

Or if he could ever forgive Kaiba.

Kaiba didn't sleep until the sun had already been up for a few hours. He simply sat on a corner of the mattress, distancing himself from Jonouchi as much as possible as if even being able to smell the shampoo in his hair might cause an adverse response. He didn't know what had triggered him, or what had been triggered to begin with...

Actually, that wasn't true. He knew what had been triggered. He used to be a terrible, terrible person. He'd known it then, and he still knew. He could recognize the feeling of his old self coming back, but he was unable to stop it. The worst part was not knowing how to solve the problem. Well, that was the second worst part. The worst, without argument, was what he'd done to Jonouchi that night when he'd lost himself. For once, it was the new him-the one who was sane-being pushed into the background, and the lurking remains of his old self that did the repressing. How was he supposed to fight his subconscious if it could so easily overpower him?

And just how insane had he become?

He spent the majority of the night sitting and staring out into the darkness, afraid even to breathe too loudly. It was as if he was hiding from a skilled predator, but he knew perfectly well that being still and quiet wouldn't ward off the demon. Somewhere in the darkness it was still looming, waiting for another chance to resurface, and Kaiba had no idea when that time would be.

Or if he'd be able to get Jonouchi back. He was sleeping much better after a few hours, as if nothing had happened. His arms were wrapped around the pillow, his face uncovered, and if it had been any other night, Kaiba would have cuddled up next to him to sleep. Or touched his hair affectionately, instead of just staring blankly at him as his chest rose and fell.

"I'm a monster."

* * *

Jonouchi stared for a while at the table in front of him, vaguely noting that the other man seemed to have played a card that removed his dead monsters from play. Which sucked, because he'd had Monster Reborn in his hand, and was thinking about playing it to save himself this turn. And he knew Kaiba's strategy well enough to predict that if he played it now, it would probably be negated by one of the spells or traps on his opponent's side of the field. He drew another card on his turn, a bit absently, and placed the Negate Attack trap on the field before ending it.

"Why don't you just give up already?" Taunted the imposter, "You can't even remember who it is you're fighting for or why."

"I don't give up duels, asshole."

"And why's that, hmmm? Too stupid still to quit while you're ahead? You don't have the sense to give up until you've fallen on your face? Your stubbornness makes you hilariously illogical. Ha, I'm hardly surprised that he finds that trait endearing."

"Shut your pie hole and play your next card."

Jonouchi didn't know what the green-haired freak was talking about, but he did know it couldn't be anything good. The kid in the stands seemed frightened of him and was cheering Jonouchi's name, so it appeared important that he be the winner. Not that Jonouchi really needed a reason to, since he always played for a victory. He'd been insulted enough times by more serious competitors that he realized he had to start taking the game as seriously as his competition did.

Like Kaiba Seto. He was the top gamer in the world, second to Yugi Mutou, and he never gave up a duel. And he never lost his confidence, no matter how hopeless the situation looked, and Jonouchi swore he'd always do the same.

* * *

Walking back towards his shit apartment, Jonouchi found himself caught in a spring rain. He hated how he'd forgotten his jacket, which was lying on his futon, and cursing himself, he thought about just running back to his building. However, it would be a bad idea to do that if he ended up tiring himself and found the gang back near his place, waiting for him. They had done a fine job of beating him last time they had met up, and Jonouchi had no desire to go through it again.

He had only managed to get better so quickly because of Kaiba's help. And if it happened again, he'd undoubtedly be alone in handling it. There was no way on earth he'd ask for Kaiba's help this time, since the man wasn't trustworthy. What if he only tried taking advantage of him again? Jonouchi would have no way to fight back if he was already injured.

Although when it had happened, it didn't even feel like Kaiba was doing it. His voice was the same, and it was the same body, but everything else about him was alien. The jerky movements of his thrusting, and how he talked to him, it didn't feel like Kaiba at all. Even when they argued, he never sounded anything like that.

But how could it have been anyone else?

There was no point in even thinking over it anymore. They weren't going to see each other ever again, if Jonouchi could help it. He'd already contacted Yugi about potentially moving overseas with him, and getting out of Japan would help things. Sure, running away from his problems wasn't the right away exactly to solve them, but what exactly could Jonouchi do? He couldn't even figure out what exactly had happened, and there was no way on earth he'd tell another soul about what happened in that bedroom...

He was just so consumed with thought, he didn't notice a black car pulling up next to him. It could have been anyone inside there, and jumping away thinking it was an attacker, Jonouchi was surprised to find Kaiba inside, rolling down the window staring at him with anxious eyes.

"You can't be out here," he said, "Jonouchi, you know better."

"Where the hell would you expect me to live? I can't afford a better place, and I'm sure as hell not moving back with you... Are you stalking me?"

"No." Kaiba's eyes twitched. "I- I just was making sure you were alright. I don't like thinking someone might jump you again. Would you please find someplace else to live?"

"You're not a part of my life anymore," Jonouchi reminded him, "you can't show up giving me orders."

"I'm not trying to bully you, I just want you safe."

"Like you did when you raped me, right?"

Kaiba stopped the car and Jonouchi faced him, arms crossed and expression killing. There was no way he was going to let his ex try convincing him to move back, no matter how much pleading he might do. What he'd done was unforgivable. Jonouchi wouldn't allow himself to just wave it off like he'd done when Kaiba had done other unsavory things...

"Katsuya, I know nothing I say or do will ever make up for the pain and betrayal you are experiencing, nor will I ever forgive myself for what I did to you, but I still care about you. I don't even care if you don't believe me, but I'm not going to watch by the side lines as you try getting yourself killed."

"I'm not trying to-"

"Then why the hell are you out here in the middle of the night when you know those men are still out there? Just please get inside."

"... Fine."

Jonouchi took the passenger side, slamming the door and feeling extremely irritable as Kaiba glanced over at him with an expression of disapproval. It was hard to even be near him, with the way he was acting, but Jonouchi knew he was right. Hanging around after dark was a stupid thing to do, and he was trying to find trouble, if only to blow off steam by fighting...

"Look, you can stay at my hotel room. A different room. I won't have access, and you'll never see me because I'm moving back into the mansion with Mokuba. At least let me do that much for you until you have some place more safe to stay."

"A place at your hotel?"

"Any room you want," told Kaiba, sighing, "For as long as you need it."

"Fine."

* * *

His opponent played the spell on his side of the field, which was De-Spell. It seemed he had intended to destroy Jonouchi's Negate Attack, but the trap card was unaffected. That was some luck, at least. There were no unpredictable spells or traps on the other side of the field now. He felt less fortunate when the green-haired man sacrificed the three monsters on his field, which signified a very powerful monster's summon-at least seven stars, possibly even eight. Appearing in a burst of light, it's mighty roar piercing the air, was the Blue-Eyes White Dragon in all its glory. Because of the size of the dueling field, the dragon was portrayed to size rather than being scaled down, and Jonouchi was given pause simply by how massive and intimidating the creature was.

"How do you even have that card?" Stammered Jonouchi, shocked by its play, "I thought only one person in the world had them?

"-You're more forgetful than I originally thought," laughed his adversary, sounding mocking and confident despite looking rather pale, "If you can't even remember who you're battling against."

He almost panicked when his opponent commanded it to attack, but he remembered his trap card. He flipped it face-up, activating the Negate Attack in time to cancel the burst stream of destruction and end the other man's battle phase. He seemed annoyed, but no less confident. Jonouchi knew that he didn't have enough life points to withstand an attack from the Blue-Eyes, certainly not directly. He drew, hoping he'd at least get his hands on a monster he could place in defense mode. If he didn't, or if his opponent summoned another monster to destroy that before a direct attack...

When he looked at the card he'd drawn, he nearly whooped for joy. By some luck, he'd managed to pull Mirror Force at a time that couldn't be more opportune. He set it on the field, looking as downtrodden as he could. He couldn't count the number of duels he'd won just by tricking his opponent into thinking he was about to lose in cases when he was not. It seemed that his opponent fell for the ruse, because he laughed in triumph while calling what he thought would be the final attack.

Jonouchi grinned, activating Mirror Force, which reflected the Blue-Eyes White Dragon's white lighting right back at it, destroying the monster in the process and leaving the other man's field empty. Now they both had no monsters left. Jonouchi had one thousand, one hundred life points remaining, and his opponent had twenty-five hundred with no spells or traps to defend him.

"You might have thought I was just some dollar store duelist before, but you're about to lose now, cabbage head," snickered Jonouchi, pointing to the impostor Kaiba with his free hand, "I have something you tried playing, but didn't belong rightfully to you. It came back to me, and now I'm going to finish you off with it!"

Feeling a rush as he started his finishing move, Jonouchi set Monster Reborn face-up on the field. He called the Blue-Eyes White Dragon to his side, reveling in the expression of dawning realization on his opponent's face when he did so. He called the final attack, and was nearly blinded by the power of the bright stream that burst forth from the dragon's mouth. His opponent's life points were devastated, and lightning crackled here and there on the field as the Blue-Eyes stood for a moment, growling, before emitting an earth-shaking roar before disappearing.

"H-How did you even manage that?" The Kaiba impostor cried out in rage, cowering as the dueling arena turned off, turning away to run before something Jonouchi couldn't see knocked him over onto his stomach. "I'm not going to die this way again!" He screamed horrifically, his voice echoing through the room as Jonouchi stared, stunned by the scene before him. Before he could ask about what was happening, however, his opponent's entire body combusted into a shower of black lights, dissolving into nothingness. It was like he wasn't even really human.

Then before he knew it, a pain knocked him over to the ground. It came like a blinding rush, memories flooding his head faster than he could process them, and falling to his knees, Jonouchi grabbed at his temples, gritting his teeth as images rushed through his brain. How could he have forgotten everything? He almost felt ashamed, when he realized just what he'd been dueling for and how he'd almost lost everything, and looking around, he realized that Seto was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey?" He called out, becoming very panicky now, "Seto, where did you run off to?"

There was no response. And now absolutely frightened that the fake Kaiba had done something to him before dying, Jonouchi got himself off the ground and ran towards the stands where he'd been sitting. He had to jump over several rows before reaching the seats, but once he did, he nearly fell over his own feet from the shock of what he found.

Seto wasn't there. Instead it was Kaiba, dressed rather plainly and lying on the ground, looking asleep like he had in the bedroom when Mokuba first showed Jonouchi what had happened. He was even wearing the same clothes. Unsure how to respond at first, Jonouchi just stared.

But then he noticed that his chest was rising and falling steadily, and becoming overwhelmed with emotion, he ran to him and sat next to his head, trying to lift Kaiba up while stroking his hair. Quite frankly, he didn't know what to say; it was like he had something caught in his throat, he was so emotional, but thankfully he didn't have to talk. The man in his lap was groaning, and when his blue eyes started blinking open, Jonouchi broke into a smile.

"W-What are you doing here?" Asked Kaiba, looking more confused than ever, as he usually did after being woken from a dream, "I thought you were leaving."

"I changed my mind about that, actually. Uh, Mokuba and I got talking, and I'm not going anywhere."

"But you were so upset... And I know this is just a dream, because after what I did to you, there's no way you'd ever change your mind about going. I'm just trying to palliate myself. There's no way this is real, I haven't been to this KaibaLand in ages..."

"Well of course this isn't real, silly," answered Jonouchi, still petting his hair, "But that doesn't mean I'm still leaving in the real world."

Kaiba just stared at him incredulously before snorting, still reluctant to believe him.

"I don't want to wake up."

"You'll have to."

"No, I don't. I could just stay here and never wake up. We could both just stay here, and then I won't have to risk you leaving me."

"Kaiba, you know that won't happen. Your brother will miss you, and there are so many people counting on you to return."

That just awarded Jonouchi another annoyed look, but rolling his eyes, the blond took it in his stride.

"-Do I really have to?" He asked, "I mean, what's just stopping me from staying here with you?"

"Well, I know if you keep talking to me like this, you'll end up late for work," lied Jonouchi, smirking, "And you have a meeting today."

"-What?"

Opening his eyes, Jonouchi found himself back in the bedroom at the Kaiba Mansion, Mokuba pulling off the equipment from his body as he tried to get out. He couldn't have been there for too long, because his stomach wasn't paining him and it was still dark outside. Looking around, he glanced at the bed, and Kaiba was still lying in it. Had he really woken up?

"He rejected you. I didn't know what to do, and the doctors said that we'd just have to try again," said Mokuba, looking quite distraught, "We did everything we could to keep you in there, it's been some four hours..."

"Let me try again," said Jonouchi, almost falling to the ground. His body was sore, and he felt disoriented, but he had to try again. Kaiba should have woken up.

"... Okay. I'll be in the hallway."

Once Mokuba had left, Jonouchi made his way over to the bed. Kaiba still appeared asleep. It was like nothing had happened, and for a second, Jonouchi began to panic. What if he hadn't won the duel? What if this was all a trick?

But then Kaiba's eyes moved under his lids, and Jonouchi gasping in surprise, the man sat up, groaning and looking all sorts of uncomfortable before he opened his eyes and stared at his companion.

"I thought you were never going to wake up-"

He didn't have a chance to blink before Jonouchi grabbed him, wrapping his arms around him and not letting go.

* * *

Five Days Later

* * *

"This headache still won't go away," sighed Kaiba, lying in bed with Jonouchi beside him, "And the doctors said the side effects of that machine shouldn't have lasted this long."

"Yeah well, you had a lot going on up in that head of yours. It may take a while for it to settle down."

"I'm missing so much work right now."

"You'll live," teased Jonouchi, "They can wait for your return."

"... Did you see anything strange back there?" asked Kaiba, avoiding Jonouchi's gaze as he looked out past the room. They hadn't really discussed what had occurred, not that Kaiba could even remember his own head trip. Everything was a mystery to him, and Jonouchi was pretty staunch about not revealing anything, so he could spare him the guilt trip.

"Nothing I didn't already know about, so stop worrying your head over it and go to sleep."

"I feel like that's all I've been doing these past few days," replied Kaiba, "But I haven't been waking up. That's at least something."

The remark caught Jonouchi's attention. Kaiba had always been a poor dreamer, and often woke up in the middle of the night in a panic, before settling down again like nothing had happened. Sometimes it disturbed Jonouchi, but it hadn't occurred at all since moving back together. And that was something noteworthy.

"It makes sharing a bed easier when you're not hitting me in the face all the time."

Kaiba turned and looked at him, opening his mouth to say something before looking away. Jonouchi almost wanted to slap himself for saying that, but he didn't, leaning against the headboard of the bed instead. He didn't need to say anything so damn triggering.

"-You're not obligated to stay with me, Jonouchi."

Jonouchi took a sharp breath, holding it for a while before releasing, unsure of how to respond. He knew nothing would ease Kaiba's mind until he explained himself, even if he didn't want to. Also he told Kaiba he wasn't planning on leaving him anymore, the man didn't believe him. It was like he was waiting for Jonouchi to just change his mind and leave again...

"Kaiba, I stay because I want to. I went after you because I wanted you back."

"I don't see why, after everything that happened between us."

Rolling his eyes, the blond just ignored the cynical comment and moved closer to Kaiba's body, flicking his nose once he got close enough. Kaiba always hated that, and he gave his companion a sore look before rubbing his nose, eyes narrowed in irritation. He didn't say anything though, and once Jonouchi was sure he had his full attention, he tried explaining himself.

"Do you remember yourself before Yugi dueled you the first time?"

"... I was very angry. But what does that have to do with anything."

He looked confused, and Jonouchi knew he was right to be.

"Kaiba, when you lost that duel, Yugi wiped your mind clear. You were crazy back then. Nearly homicidal. And I couldn't remember much myself about it until I went into your head and saw_ him_ again... That old you.

I know why you assaulted me. Or rather, he did. And although I won't be able to recover from what happened and see you the same way for a long time, I'm going to try. I want you back. Even if you don't trust yourself with me anymore, I am willing to prove to you that everything will be all right. That old you, he won't be coming back. I made sure of it, and I need you to just believe what I'm telling you no matter how crazy it sounds and let me back into your life, okay?"

They stared at each other for a good minute or two before Kaiba spoke. His face looked strained, but Jonouchi could tell he was trying hard to keep composed, as he usually did whenever he was hit hard with emotions he didn't feel like dealing with. It didn't happen often, but when it did, his shoulders always shook a little and he couldn't keep his jaw relaxed.

"How can you be so sure I'm fine, Jonouchi? I haven't been fine since-"

"-I know you, Kaiba Seto. Just trust me for once."

Kaiba gave out another dubious glance toward his partner, but finally relaxed and laid on his side, Jonouchi just watching him. Whenever he closed his eyes and relaxed, he looked more like his younger self. That cute kid who didn't have all the problems that plagued his now grown adult self, and smiling, Jonouchi moved closer, until his legs were up against Kaiba's back. Using a free hand, he played with the man's hair, wondering if he was already asleep by now. He had been exhausted, and although it usually took him a long time to drift off, Kaiba's sleep had been improving. He no longer was such an insomniac.

"-And Kaiba?"

"Hmmm?"

"You're still my best friend. Whatever happens, I'll always be there for you."

"... You're so sentimental, Katsuya."

"... Go to sleep, asshole. I'll see you in the morning."


End file.
